


By the Sword and Ring

by thenerdyindividual



Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Leader Harry, M/M, Mage Eggsy, Magic, Magic-Users, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-04
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-11-23 06:33:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 48,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11397105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thenerdyindividual/pseuds/thenerdyindividual
Summary: The last thing Eggsy expects upon being chased out of his village, is to wake up in a nomadic village. Soon he finds himself in a world of magic as he trains to be Lord Hart's battle mage. With war brewing on the border, he is drawn inexorably closer to evil itself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Huge shout out to those who made this story possible!  
> Thank you plantboy-elliot for being my sounding board, and for giving me confidence. Thank you anarchycox for being an amazing beta despite Hartwin not being your cup of tea. Lastly, thank you to bouncybritonne for creating the amazing artwork that accompanies this fic.

Eggsy’s breath burns in his lungs as he sprints. His spells all failing, his only hope is to make it to the river and cross into no man’s land. Not even Dean is reckless enough to follow him there. His legs are spattered all the way up to his knees with mud from the spring rains. The grass is slippery and twice he's slipped and almost fallen to his knees. The weight of his pack slung haphazardly over one shoulder leaves him unbalanced and makes navigating the divots and grass even more difficult.  
The river looms ahead, roaring and crashing over the stones at the bottom. It’s swollen to the point of almost breaking the bank with spring melt. Eggsy’s relief is short lived. Just as he breaches the edge of the field, the hunting party crashes through the underbrush. He risks a glance over his shoulder and blanches; twelve hulking brutes all with weapons raised coming at him full speed, Dean at the head of the pack. Eggsy puts on a desperate burst of speed and, ignoring everything his mum has taught him since he was knee high, barrels into the river. The water crashes into his hips, threatening to sweep him away like a twig. It fills his boots with ice and numbs his legs but another quick glance over his shoulder shows that sure enough the party stops short, unwilling to put themselves at risk.  
Eggsy takes a deep breath, gathers the magic he's been hemorrhaging since the chase began around him, and shuffles forward. The stones hold. Bolstered by his victory, Eggsy takes a more confident step forward. He works his way across the river like that, testing each stone before he dares put his full weight down. He reaches the halfway point and the water crashes against his chest, splashing into his armpits. The cold makes Eggsy curse under his breath but he presses forward. Just as he nudges the next stone with his toe, an arrow whizzes past his head. He twists to look behind him and curses loudly when he realizes Rotty had taken it upon himself to bring Eggsy down with his archery skills.  
Panicked, Eggsy blunders forward. His foot catches on a loose stone and he stumbles. He corrects his stance and aims for the large protrusion of rock just a few paces ahead. The water pounds against it menacingly but climbing up would shorten his time spent getting across. The stones shift under his boots the closer he gets to the protrusion but Eggsy steadfastly ignores them.  
Finally he grasps the jagged edge of the protrusion and pulls himself out of the water, hauling in deep gulping breaths. He lays as flat to the rock as he can while catches his breath, making himself a difficult target. He stands up, sets his eyes on the opposite bank, and runs. As he reaches the edge of the rock there is a sudden searing pain in his hip, his boots slip on the algae built up on the rocks, and he falls. He has just enough time to shout a spell before icy waters close over his head.  
* 

Eggsy is five the first time it happens.  
The fringe is a cold hard place, and his dad can't get the kindling in their tiny fireplace to light. He curses as the flint sparks again but doesn't catch. Eggsy wanders over and stares at the careful pyramid of logs, twigs, and leaves.  
“Have y’ asked it t’ light Da?” He asks curiously and Lee looks up at him with an amused smile.  
“No little egg. That ain't how that works.”  
“How come?” Eggsy asks.  
Lee sits back on his haunches and wraps an arm around Eggsy’s slight shoulders.  
“It's just how it goes. Y’ have t’ use hard work.” Lee explains, green eyes warm with affection.  
“But y’ ain't even tried.” Eggsy says indignantly.  
“Alright. Go on then. Ask it to light.” Lee laughs.  
Eggsy sits down on the chilly stone hearth and holds his tiny hands out to the kindling. There is a burning glow somewhere deep inside, like the time he ate too many berries. It bubbles up to his throat and a word spills from his lips. The sensation spreads to his arms and hands, there is a mighty whoosh, and the kindling bursts into flames.  
“Shit,” Lee yells and leaps back several feet, “‘Chell love! You're gonna wanna get in here!”  
Michelle sprints in from the garden, eyes wide with panic.  
“What's the matter?!” she demands.  
Lee points at the fire roaring away merrily in the fireplace, and says shakily “Eggsy did that.”  
Michelle frowns and turns to Lee with her hands on his hips, “What d’ya mean Eggsy did that? You comin’ down with somethin’?”  
“I mean Eggsy started the fire.”  
“So? Y’ve been wantin’ t’ teach ‘im.”  
“Without a flint,” Lee deadpans.  
“Don't be silly,” Michelle says dismissively, “Only people wif magic c’n do that.”  
“Exactly.”  
Michelle’s face drops and she turns to Eggsy, still perched triumphantly in front of his fire. She kneels down to his level and clasps one of his hands in hers.  
“Did y’ light the fire my egg?”  
“Yeah.”  
“And how did y’ do that,” Michelle asks.  
“I asked it t’ start,” Eggsy says, proud in the way only five years olds can manage.  
Michelle takes a steadying breath and smiles.  
“Well good for you. D’ya think y’ could stop it for mum?”  
“I can try,” Eggsy says with a shrug and shifts on threadbare knees to look at the fire.  
He stretches his hands out towards the fire once again, there is the same bubbling glow, and the fire blows out.  
“Jesus,” Michelle curses “What are we gonna do?”  
“Figure it out,” Lee murmurs. 

By the time Eggsy is seven the entire village knows about Eggsy’s powers. He's learned how to ward off cold for vegetable patches, how to heal broken bones, how to waterproof roofs, and how to make things fly. The last one comes in handy when he helps to put away provisions and he can't reach a shelf. Michelle’s fears of her baby being ostracized seem to be unfounded. Eggsy makes everyone’s lives easier and his sweetness endears him to all.  
He’s also seven the first time his magic fails him.  
The day is clear and cold. It’s mid January so the ground is more ice than anything else. It’s not unusual for the little town with its humble cottages to receive visitors who are traveling from their kingdom to another; they’re the last stop before a seemingly unending stretch of wilderness. However they usually come in spring and summer, when the grass blows in the wind and the scent of wildflowers hangs in the air, not when roofs are caked with snow that threatens to break through the crumbling wood. So when there’s the sound of hoof beats, loud even muffled with snow, everyone is on high alert.  
Eggsy can’t remember how many raiders there were. At the time it felt like hundreds but could’ve been as few as ten. The Reach is a village of farmers, not fighters. They are unprepared for a fight. The raiders trample into the center of the village, crossbows held at the ready. A few of the men choose to fight back, Lee among them. They are outnumbered. The snow melts under the hot spill of blood, creating horrific sculptures in the ice. In a matter of seconds the men are cut down. The houses, looted of winter provisions, stand still-steaming in the cold air.  
Michelle tries to keep Eggsy back from the worst of it but he rips himself from her grip and dashes for the crumpled figure of his father, already coated in a fine layer of snow. Eggsy falls to his knees and takes Lee’s hand in his own. Lee smiles raggedly and takes his son’s cold little hands in his big warm ones.  
“Y’ll get frostbite if y’ ain't careful little egg,” he wheezes.  
“Whats wrong Da? You sick?” Eggsy asks clutching tightly to the hands surrounding his.  
“I’m ‘fraid so,” Lee says with a rueful smile, “But I don't wantcha worryin’ ‘bout that.”  
“But I can make y’ better Da! I just gotta ask,” Eggsy says desperately, already freeing his hands to find that familiar bubbling sensation. Try as he might, it refuses to come. Eggsy strains as hard as he can, unwilling to believe that something so natural would give up on him. It sets a painful throb behind his eyes.  
“Don’t hurt y’rself little egg,” Lee coughs and wraps an arm around Eggsy’s back.  
“But you ain’t better,” Eggsy says indignantly.  
“I know sweet boy,’ Lee says comfortingly and tilts his head toward Michelle as she kneels next to him, “Hello love.’  
“Idiot,” Michelle sniffs but takes Lee’s free hand in hers, “Don’t leave.”  
“Not gonna be possible. Gods I love you so much,” he says and looks back at Eggsy, “Both of ya. Couldn’t ask for a better family.”  
It is a blur after that. Eggsy remembers his mother’s tortured scream, and being bodily hauled away by two arms around his waist. He doesn’t understand why his Da isn’t getting up.

Michelle doesn’t come back from that. She still tends to Eggsy but it’s like she’s enchanted. She drifts through life without paying much attention. Their neighbors are more than generous the first few years; always stopping by with food and supplies. Eventually their generosity wears thin. They grow hostile, each claiming that if they were able to move on from the attack Michelle should too. Eggsy does chores around the village for food and a coin or two but he’s still too little to do much besides housework.  
So when Dean blows into town he seems like a God send. He gives Eggsy treats, is gentle with Michelle’s still broken heart. He’s wary of Eggsy’s magic but that’s to be expected when he didn’t watch Eggsy grow up. Life improves over all. There’s suddenly someone to do the hunting, and tending to the garden, untouched since Lee’s death. If he drinks a little too much everyone ignores it; after all he’s being so helpful.  
Michelle and Dean are married in the fall, just after last harvest. Their plan is that they’ll spend winter as the honeymoon. It only makes sense since they would end up spending most of their days inside anyway due to the cold. There’s much celebrating the happy couple. Eggsy misses his Da dreadfully but decides if Dean makes his mum happy, he’s happy too.

They make it a year before one of Dean’s drinking rages gets violent. He comes home from a neighbor’s house stumbling drunk and slams the door open with more force than strictly necessary. Michelle emerges from their bedroom, bleary eyed.  
“Dean? You okay?” she asks softly.  
Dean whirls around from his position trying to get the door closed to face her. Sensing trouble Michelle smiles placatingly, and shuffles forward quietly.  
“It’s good t’ have y’ home I was missin’ you,” she says sweetly.  
“Where I been ain’t none of your business,” he growls and advances on her.  
“I know that. I just like when y’re here’s all,” Michelle says.  
Dean picks up a glass that had been sitting innocently on the wooden kitchen table and throws it at Michelle’s head. His aim is so lousy from the drink that the glass shatters against the wall, missing Michelle entirely. Still it’s enough to wake Eggsy in time to hear his mum yelp and Dean yell, “Clean it up Michelle!”  
The door to their bedroom slams closed and Eggsy emerges from his own room. He sneaks over to his mum and wordlessly starts helping her pick up the pieces. Once they’re done and the broken shards have been tossed into the heap outside, Eggsy finds his voice. He’s only thirteen but even he can tell his mum should be treated better.  
“He ain’t a good bloke mum,” he whispers.  
Michelle smooths his hair back from his forehead and shakes her head.  
“He ain’t bad Eggsy. He just struggles sometimes. He’s used to bigger and better you know. Bein’ from the city and all,” she reassures.  
Eggsy falls silent again. It’s pointless to try to argue with adults.  
He learns to take a beating in his mum’s place by the time he’s fifteen. He also learns to hide his magic. After Dean caught him lighting the fire using magic and beat him within an inch of his life, Eggsy finds it prudent to keep that skill on the down low. He uses it to his advantage when he can. There’s not much use in his village but two villages over is bustling with life. He performs magic tricks for the crowds to bring in some extra coin. On good days he can bring home enough to pay for supplies for a week, on the bad days he leaves with an empty cap and belly.  
Dean thinks he’s turning tricks for the men of the village and Eggsy doesn’t correct him. Even when Dean starts selling him to the spring and summer travelers. It keeps his mum and Daisy safe, and if he earns enough Dean leaves him alone. Men pay him extra if he does magic too, but he’s careful not to let Dean see.

*

When Dean catches him again it’s because Eggsy is left in charge of watching Daisy. She’s curled up in the crib that the carpenter two houses down made as a birthday gift, and Eggsy is levitating a few of her toys to swirl in soothing patterns. The trick never fails to lull her to sleep if she’s crying. Eggsy gazes fondly at the wisps of blonde hair and the chubby cheeks, wondering how someone as vile as Dean Baker can produce something so sweet. He sets the toys down again just as Dean comes barreling through the front door, face crimson from too much drink.  
Eggsy hopes that maybe this time Dean is too drunk to see but it’s too late. Dean charges at him, hands outstretched. Eggsy tries to dive sideways but Dean catches him around the throat and hauls him up against the wall, choking him. Daisy is awake and crying. Michelle stumbles blearily out of the bedroom and lets out a terrified yelp.  
“Dean! Put ‘im down! Y’ll kill ‘im!’  
“Shut up Michelle! He was doin’ that devil shit again,” Dean roars.  
Eggsy takes advantage of the momentary distraction and uses his magic to bodily shove Dean out of the way. He ducks under Dean’s flailing arms and dashes to his bedroom. He slams the door shut and uses magic to seal it. He crams what clothes and hidden provisions he can into a pack, and flings open his window. He jumps out, landing with a squelch in the mud outside. He doesn’t care. Behind him he can hear yelling. One of Dean’s goons is screaming for Dean to follow Eggsy. Eggsy keeps going. He tries to throw spells over his shoulder to slow his pursuers down but it’s no use. The panic makes his magic too unfocused. He reaches the river, and is halfway across when the icy waters close over his head. He has enough presence of mind to shout a spell to keep him from drowning before everything goes black.

When Eggsy comes to the first thing he notices is the throb in his hip. He vaguely remembers the searing pain before he fell and assumes that it must’ve been an arrow. The next thing he notices is that wherever he is, it’s soft and warm. He can hear a fire crackling somewhere nearby and he blinks his eyes open to get a better idea of where he is. It looks like a tent, the roof is a bright red canopy. He realizes the soft thing he’s surrounded by are furs. He pushes himself into a sitting position, keeping the furs wrapped around him to ward off cold, and groans as the motion tugs at his hip. He inspects it curiously. The person who brought him here had removed the arrow, cleaned the wound, and bandaged him.  
The tent flap opens and a wizened old woman pokes her head in. She looks surprised to find Eggsy awake. She toddles in with a gentle smile and comes to stand by Eggsy.  
“We thought you’d be out a lot longer’n that. It’s a good thing he heard your call,” she says and kneels down, reaching for Eggsy’s hip.  
Eggsy flinches away and wraps the furs tight around him, suddenly realizing he is stark naked.  
“What call?” he demands and the old woman chuckles.  
“The one you sent us silly,’ she says as if Eggsy is five and not five and twenty, “You just stay right there. I will let Lord Hart know you’re awake. He wants to speak to you.  
Before Eggsy can ask her “Who the fuck is Lord Hart,” she’s toddled away again, leaving Eggsy alone is the darkened tent. He glances around the space, wondering if he could grab something to cover with when making his escape. He’s just planning to wrap himself in the furs he already has, when the tent flap flies open again.  
In shuffles the old woman as expected, but someone is following her. Eggsy sinks back, trying to be as small as possible, and therefore less of a target. The man who follows the old woman is tall. He has a strong jaw and dark hair, and walks like he owns the world. A thrill goes through Eggsy’s stomach.  
The man drops into the chair by the mat where Eggsy is sitting, not deigning to dirty his cloak and breeches with grass. He uses the chair like a throne.  
“I am Lord Hart,” he says by way of introduction and his English is even better than Eggsy’s despite being a lord of no man’s land, “And you are?”  
“Eggsy.”  
“Well Eggsy, I have some questions for you.”


	2. Chapter 2

Eggsy decides to take a different tack; pulls the furs tighter around himself, and sets his jaw stubbornly. He's been around Dean long enough to know that men who flaunt their power only respond to strength.  
“What kind of questions are they then?” Eggsy asks and tries not to smirk at the surprise that flashes briefly across Lord Hart’s eyes.  
“To begin I'd like to know how you came to be floating down a river, bleeding out?” Lord Hart inquires.  
“Why's that important?” Eggsy asks petulantly.  
“My soldiers dragged you out of that river, at great personal risk. My healers used supplies on you that could have been saved for my people. I believe I deserve to know who I rescued,” Lord Hart announces calmly, and stares straight at Eggsy.  
Eggsy stares back hard for as long as he can but he can feel himself begin to break under the intense scrutiny. Eventually he looks away.  
“My stepfather and his gang were chasin’ me,” he answers.  
“Why?” Lord Hart implores, and Eggsy can't fight down a snort.  
“Cause we don't get along.”  
“I see. How did you learn to call for us?” Lord Hart questions.  
Eggsy sits up straight again. He can see the opportunity to get answers for himself, and he isn't about to pass that up.  
“She mentioned a call earlier,” he says and gestures towards the old woman stoking the fire, “I don't know what that means. What kinda call was it? Like a bird or some shit?”  
Lord Hart leans back in his chair and seems to really contemplate Eggsy like he's looking for deception. It goes on for what feels like ages, being picked apart by honeyed eyes. It would be just Eggsy’s luck to be killed the one time he isn't intentionally being an ass. Finally Lord Hart reaches an unobservable conclusion and his gaze softens minutely.  
“You called for help,” he explains, “and your magic brought us to you.”  
Eggsy’s face screws up in confusion and he shakes his head. He hadn't called for anyone. He'd done a spell to keep from drowning, nothing else. He isn't even entirely sure he has the power to call out to people. Let alone an entire band of nomads hundreds of miles away.  
“I can do magic yeah. But bruv, y’ musta heard somethin’ else and stumbled across me. There's no way I coulda done that,” Eggsy explains.  
“It was you,” Lord Hart assures.  
“Whatever,” Eggsy shoots back with a roll of his eyes, “What are y’ gonna do with me now that y’ve got me?”  
“That rather depends on you.”  
“Yeah? How so?”  
“You are not a prisoner here. Believe it or not, we don't tend to hold innocent people captive,” Lord Hart begins, “Often,” he adds as an afterthought. “My point being if you wish to walk free and make your own way no one here will stop you. But…”  
“But?” Eggsy prompts.  
“If you would like to stay you can do that as well. It would take time to convince my council to allow it, but in the end you could stay,” Lord Hart finishes.  
“Just like that? You’d feed me, clothe me, all that shit?” Eggsy asks suspiciously.  
“Not for free--”  
“So what you want me to do then?!” Eggsy snaps, cutting Lord Hart off mid sentence, “Just keep your bed warm?”  
“Hardly,” Lord Hart says mildly.  
“What then?”  
“I could use another battle mage,” Lord Hart answers in that same even tone.  
Eggsy relaxes minutely but still shakes his head. Lord Hart obviously hadn't payed attention to anything Eggsy said before. Eggsy was good at small tricks, easy harmless magic. Starting fires was about as advanced as he got. He couldn't even heal a nick.  
“I appreciate the offer but I can't do that. I don't have near as much power as y’re thinkin’. Y’ need me to go around, makin’ sure no fires die? I can do that. But not much else,” Eggsy says apologetically. Odd how he's always apologizing for his magic; too much or not enough.  
“You would be trained by Merlin,” Lord Hart states.  
“What, like the bloke from the King Arthur stories?” Eggsy asks incredulously.  
Lord Hart’s mouth quirks up on one side into a smile and Eggsy finds himself smiling back.  
“Sadly not. Just a rather uncreative nickname I'm afraid,” Lord Hart explains, “Would you like to join us Eggsy?”  
“Think I got anythin’ left to lose?”  
Lord Hart let's out a puff of air that could've been a chuckle and his gaze warms almost imperceptibly. He rises from the chair he'd been sitting in, and inclines his head towards Eggsy politely.  
“I shall discuss this with the council tonight. I hope you will be well enough to join us,” he says, and strides towards the entrance flaps. He's most of the way out, when it occurs to Eggsy.  
“Wait!” He calls and Lord Hart pauses mid step to turn to him, “Could I have some clothes?”  
Again there's that almost chuckle and Lord Hart nods, “I'll have someone bring you something.”  
The tent flap falls shut behind him and the old woman begins bustling about Eggsy and chattering. She brings him some warm broth with small chunks of meat swimming in it. He swallows it down gratefully, unaware of how hungry he was from everything happened before. The spices make his ears tingle pleasantly.  
He's lost all track of the day by the time the old woman returns with the clothes Lord Hart promised. She helps him to his feet and shoves the bundle into his arms.  
“There y’ are deary. If you need help with anything just call. I'll be just outside the tent.”  
Eggsy unfolds each piece and lays it out on his pallet. There's a pair of leather breeches so soft and supple they feel like a second skin and thankfully don't press on his wound at all, a woolen shirt, and a riding cloak lined with the same warm bushy fur as the blankets on the pallet and it brushes his jaw. The old woman pokes her head around the flap again.  
“The meeting’s starting. Would you like to go?” She asks and Eggsy nods.  
He limps over to the entrance, trying not to wince as each step tugs on his wound. He steps out into the main camp for the first time and is overwhelmed by the number of people. There are children yelling and running around, enjoying life. There's probably twenty campfires, each one with a minimum of four people. There are men settling in their horses for the night, women bent over fires stirring stew. It's full of movement and activity. The Fringe was never like that before. There were maybe twenty people in the whole town.  
He works his way towards the center of the camp, where the grandest of the tents stands tall among the rest. He passes by several fires and does his best to ignore the curious looks sent his way. Something brushes against his leg and he startles away before he realizes it's just a cat. It's ginger fur stands out against the grass, turned black in the evening and firelight. Ignoring the way his hip protests, he bends down and gives it a scratch behind the ears. By the time he reaches the tent he has three more cats in tow.  
He moves the flap and slips inside. The movement draws the attention of Lord Hart. He smiles and gestures for Eggsy to come to the table.  
“Glad you could join us Eggsy. We were just beginning.”  
Eggsy comes forward and hovers awkwardly at the empty space left at the table. All eyes are on him, and he glances around quickly to take stock. Immediately to Lord Hart’s right there's a tall bald man who's strong nose and jaw reminds Eggsy of a hawk. Next to the hawk like man is, surprisingly, a girl about Eggsy’s age; her hair is whisked into a smooth ponytail. There's another man about Eggsy’s age who looks like he could use a punch to the face. To Lord Hart’s left is a man who seems to be brimming with energy, and next to him stands a serious man.  
“Gentlemen, lady,” Lord Hart begins, “This is Eggsy. He seeks a place here. We've already discussed what the terms of his residency would be. The floor is open to comments.”  
The young woman steps forward and shoots Eggsy a kind smile, “I say we let him stay. We aren't exactly hard up for supplies, and if Harry believes that whatever he has to offer is enough, then I'm willing to trust that decision.”  
The young man who needs a punch, snorts in derision and shakes his head. Lord Hart ignores it for the time being as the bald man takes his turn.  
“I believe it depends on whether we think what he has to offer is enough. Are ye willing to reveal that information Harry?”  
“He would be trained by you as a battle mage. Eggsy has magic and I think it could grow under your tutelage,” Lord Hart responds. That would be Merlin then.  
“Always the flatterer,” Merlin jokes with a roll of his eyes, “I say it be contingent upon how well he progresses with his magic.”  
The two men to Lord Hart’s left concur which draws another snort from the young man. This time Lord Hart turns to him.  
“Is there something you wish to add Charlie?”  
“Yes,” he drawls and the voice alone makes Eggsy really want to hit him, “We are not a refuge. We can't just let people in. If we do we could be over run by anyone mildly inconvenienced.”  
That sends up a roar of chatter around the table and it settles like an itch under Eggsy’s skin. He hates that they're talking about him like he isn't there. He should have a say in defending his own future.  
“He was shot, Charlie. That seems like more than a mild inconvenience,” Roxy hisses.  
“I'm still here y’ know!” Eggsy snaps loudly and the table falls silent, “Look. I know I don't got much say here but I learn fast and I do good work. I don't plan on bein’ useless alright?”  
He watches each person, trying to guess their reaction. Merlin seems mildly impressed, the young woman is trying not to smile, the man brimming with energy doesn't even try to hide his grin. Charlie looks pissed, and the serious man is inscrutable. Lord Hart nods approvingly at him.  
“You heard him. He will figure out ways to be useful. You all know my opinion, but as always I will respect yours. All in favor of letting Eggsy stay, say aye.”  
There's a chorus of ‘aye’s, Charlie the only nay. Lord Hart smiles that almost smile of his and turns to Eggsy.  
“Welcome to Kingsman, Eggsy,” Lord Hart announces. “Roxy, Merlin if you could stay with Eggsy and I please, the rest of you are dismissed.”

The three others shuffle out and Eggsy limps his way to where Lord Hart stands at the head of his table. Roxy grabs a chair and quickly pulls it over so Eggsy can sit.  
“I'm sure standing isn't good for the wound. I think the healers would flay Harry alive if it got infected or tore.”  
“Thank y’.” Eggsy says gratefully, and sits.  
The rest draw chairs up for themselves as well. Roxy sits next to Eggsy, but Merlin and Lord Hart remain in their original spots.  
“So Eggsy,” Merlin starts, “What magic can ye do?”  
“Little stuff. Ain't nothin’ much. Lord Hart really thinks way too much of it really,” Eggsy explains.  
“Specifics please,” Merlin asks.  
“I can start fires, small ones. I can make things invisible, and float. If I'm lucky the shit listens when I ask it to do somethin’.”  
“It listens when ye ask it to do something?” Merlin repeats for clarification.  
“Yeah,” Eggsy answers, “Don't actually know any proper spells or shit. I just ask the magic to work and a weird language pops out.”  
Merlin’s eyebrows shoot up in shock. If Eggsy didn't think it would take much more than a beginner to do so, he would say Merlin looks almost frightened. Although why anyone would be afraid of Eggsy was beyond him. He'd beaten the crap out of Dean’s boys more than once but they always came back for more.  
“It takes considerable talent to get that far lad. Most men I've known have spent years slaving away at books, memorizing spells. I cannae think of one who could do that,” Merlin explains.  
“Well it ain't do much good. It don't work most of the time,” Eggsy sighs.  
“Probably because ye have very little control. Harry does not have magic but even he could feel it rolling off of ye in waves,” Merlin says, “With proper training ye could be the most talented sorcerer of our time.”  
“Y’re mad. Both of y’,” Eggsy snorts disbelievingly and leans back in his chair, “Y’ want me to train ‘cause y’ think I'll be useful, then go ahead. Don't get y’r hopes up though.”  
“Very well,” Lord Hart interjects, “We will judge based on how useful your skills are once you begin training rather than judging how quickly improve.”  
“Thank you, m’lord. I’m grateful that y’re letting me stay. Even if I can’t improve my magic, I’ll find a way to be useful. Swear,” Eggsy promises politely.  
Merlin lets out a surprised bark of laughter and Lord Hart kicks him under the table. Eggsy turns to Roxy in confusion but even she is horribly amused by whatever he said. He glances back to Merlin for clarification, mortification creeping up his spine.  
“It's nothing lad,” Merlin says kindly, “It's just that Old Maz is the only who still calls this berk Lord Hart. The rest of us disrespectful heathens call him Harry.”  
Eggsy grins in relief and turns to Lord Hart, “Am I allowed to call y’ that too, then?”  
“Yes,” Lord Hart sighs and shoots a poisonous look at Merlin, “There's no point in saying no when everyone will just go into hysterics if you call me my lord again. I know you will be an excellent addition to our camp. There is no need to worry about that.”  
“Harry it is,” Eggsy agrees and looks to Merlin, “When are we startin’ trainin’ or whatever? Not to be whiny but if it involves a lot of walkin’ I ain't gonna be able t’ go much.”  
“We will wait until ye are more healed. Magic requires quite a lot of energy. As soon as healers say ye can work, we will begin. I follow their rules unlike someone,” Merlin says and shoots a pointed look at Harry.  
“Just because I elect to work from bed--” Harry starts.  
“Or that time ye were stabbed and bled half to death but decided to fight a border skirmish anyway,” Merlin retorts severely.  
Roxy leans over and nudges Eggsy with her elbow. He turns from the, obviously, age old argument, and looks to her.  
“They'll be like this for ages. Want me to walk you back to your tent?” she asks and Eggsy nods.  
“That'd be aces. Thanks,” he whispers.  
They rise and bid goodnight to the two men still bickering. They pause long enough to return the sentiment but then go back to it. Roxy and Eggsy step out of the tent and Eggsy sighs as the cool air sweeps over him.  
“Are the two of ‘em married or somethin’?” he asks.  
“Not exactly,” Roxy giggles, “Really they should be the way the two of them go on. Merlin is Harry’s second in command. If somethin’ happens to Harry, Merlin is in charge.”  
“So you don't go by blood?” Eggsy questions.  
“We respect it which is why Charlie’s on the council. His uncle was lord before Harry but had to step down,” Roxy explains.  
They fall into comfortable silence as they walk. Eggsy looks down when he feels something brush his leg and smiles when he realizes the cats have joined him again. He leans down and scoops the ginger one up to pet it.  
“That's odd,” Roxy remarks.  
“What is?” Eggsy responds.  
“Well those are Merlin’s cats. They're temperamental at best. We let them stay because they keep the mice out of supplies.”  
Eggsy shrugs and buries his face in the cat’s fur with a sigh. The cat let's out a few happy chirps and starts licking Eggsy’s hand.  
“Seems to like me. I've always been good with animals though,” Eggsy tells her.  
Roxy stares at him without speaking. It makes Eggsy uncomfortable. It seems like everyone stares constantly at him.  
“What?” he asks and Roxy shakes her head.  
They work their way back to Eggsy’s tent, occasionally pausing to greet one of the people gathered around the various fires. Eggsy sets the cat down when he reaches his tent and turns back to Roxy.  
“Thanks for walkin’ me. Y’re a good mate,” he smiles and Roxy smiles back.  
“I'm glad you're staying. The only other person my age is Charlie and I was genuinely considering killing him if I had to spend much more time with him. Goodnight.”  
“Night,” Eggsy responds and heads into the tent. He strips and carefully re-folds everything and sets the clothes on the chair to keep them clean. He hopes whoever donated them doesn't miss them too much. He forgot to ask about his pack but he has a feeling it was swept away with the river current. There wasn't anything too important in it, except for a coat with a patch of fabric from Daisy’s blanket sewn into the lining.  
He misses his family, but he knows he's better off here, even if they kick him out. He won't have to watch over his shoulder anymore. He won't have to hunt for food. He'll be free of pain inflicted by others.  
He sighs and slips beneath the furs on his pallet. He's exhausted. The walking to and from the meeting has sapped his last energy. His hip is going to take ages to heal. With that last thought he falls asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day dawns cold and windy, typical for early spring. Eggsy’s hip aches something fierce as he dresses and hobbles out into the main camp. Other than Old Maz, he hasn't seen any type of healer since whenever they last came to check on him while he was unconscious. The ache is worsening and he has a nagging feeling he should get his hip checked. There's no one outside. The fires from the night before have died out, and the tents sway in the wind.   
With no indication of where a healer might be, Eggsy works his way back to the meeting tent. Harry must be up early if he wants to plan the movements of his people and if anyone would know where a healer is, it would be him.   
In the daylight he can truly appreciate the camp. Most of the tents are faded but the patchwork is still brilliant. They only get more colorful the closer he gets to the center. It's beautiful the way the colors stand out boldly against the grey sky and look like overgrown plants sticking out of the grass.   
He reaches the meeting tent and pokes his head through the entrance. Merlin and Harry are bent over something on the table and both look up at the movement. There’s a frown on Harry’s face but it smooths away when he realizes it's Eggsy.   
“Eggsy? You're up early. Come in,” he invites and Eggsy limps inside and up to the table, “What brings you here?”  
“I was wonderin’ if y’ could tell me where a healer was. My hip’s hurtin’ a bit. Thought I'd get it checked out,” Eggsy explains.   
“I can look at it lad,” Merlin chimes in, “If ye don't mind.”  
“No. Don't mind. Thanks bruv,” Eggsy agrees and pulls up the hem of his shirt.   
Merlin crouches down and gently unravels the bandages. He pokes around the edge of the wound carefully.  
“It seems fine,” he announces, “It is a little inflamed. I can cast a spell to make it hurt less if ye like.”  
“Why can't y’ just heal it?”  
“Because the healers have already worked on it. If I try to layer my own magic over the top it could be disastrous,” Merlin explains. “Besides. As powerful as I am my healing magic can get a bit crude. I am strictly a battle field healer.”  
“So should I even be trustin’ y’ t’ do this?” Eggsy jokes.   
“Yes.” Merlin grunts and places his pointer fingers on either side of the row of stitches on Eggsy’s hip. He murmurs something under his breath and the pressure Eggsy was feeling lifts. Eggsy sighs in relief and smiles warmly at Merlin.   
“Thanks mate. Feels loads better.”   
“Of course. While I have ye, I thought we could discuss your training in more depth.”  
“Sure thing.”   
Merlin gestures at the chairs still arranged at the table like the night before. Eggsy sits where he did at the end of the night before and Merlin sits across from him. Harry stays where he is, apparently uninterested in the proceedings.   
“So ye mentioned that ye can start fires?”  
“Yeah. First thing I could do. Scared the shit outta my da.”  
“What else did ye learn?”  
“Taught m’self t’ levitate things. Could heal broken bones at one point but I… I'm outta practice.”  
Merlin nods as if he's keeping a list. He turns his head to where Harry is standing.   
“Ye have any input Harry?”  
“I trust you implicitly Merlin. I believe if anyone knows how to train a new generation of mages, it's you.”  
Merlin rolls his eyes and turns back to Eggsy. They spend several more minutes discussing what Eggsy can expect. He is distracted the entire time. Harry looks different in the light of day, just as imposing but it lends details firelight can’t. Like the grey peaking through at Harry’s temples, or the refined wrinkles at the corner of his eyes. Eggsy rises when Merlin dismisses him from the table and gives both men a respectful nod before leaving.   
The camp is starting to wake up as he steps outside. Sleepy children are huddled near the fire as someone cooks breakfast. Merlin’s cats wind around his ankles again and he scoops the smallest of the bunch, a calico, up to pet while he walks. It purrs contentedly in the crook of his elbow.  
He spots Roxy a few paces ahead of him and jogs to catch up. Whatever spell Merlin cast seems to be holding up.   
He taps her shoulder with his free hand and stumbles back when she whirls around looking ready to cut someone down. When she realizes it's him, she relaxes and shoots him an apologetic grin.   
“Sorry. Training.”  
Eggsy shakes his head dismissively, “You're good. Just wanted t’ see what y’ were up t’.”  
“Nothing really. I was planning on eating some breakfast. Have you had any yet?”  
“No. M’ hip hurt so I went t’ Merlin t’ ask where healers were.”  
Roxy takes him by the arm and starts propelling him forward, “Then you can eat breakfast with my uncles and I. Then I can show you where the healers are so you don't have to trek all the way from Old Maz’s tent.”  
Eggsy has no choice but to stumble along with her firm grip.   
Roxy’s tent is bigger than Old Maz’s and looks far more lived in. Come to think of it he's not sure where Old Maz disappears to all the time. He's only seen her in the tent that time she came to check on him.   
Where Old Maz’s tent is dark with a heavy red canopy, Roxy’s tent is light. The roof is stone colored and the walls are a patchwork of blues and greens and yellows. The flaps are pinned back to let in fresh air and light.   
Roxy leads Eggsy in without so much as bothering to ask if her uncles are okay with it.   
“Hello Uncle Percy!” She says brightly and the serious man from the night before stands up from where he'd been prodding the fire.   
“Hello Roxy, Eggsy,” he greets. “James should be back soon. I put him in charge of water duty. Take a seat.”  
Roxy tugs Eggsy along to the pile of cushions nearest the fire and drops onto one. Eggsy follows her lead and a few seconds later her Uncle Percy presents him with a bowl of vegetable stew. They're too busy eating to talk at first and by the time they've had their fill, the smiling man from the night before has come back with a bucket of water.   
His face lights up when he sees Eggsy and he abandons his bucket to sit next to him.   
“I didn't know we were having guests,” he says cheerfully.   
“He hadn't eaten yet,” Roxy says around a mouthful of the bread that was served with the stew.   
“I see. Well we have plenty,” James says and digs into his own bowl, “Have you started training yet Eggsy? Merlin and Harry seem to think you can kill us all of you sneeze too hard.”  
“Not yet.” Eggsy hurries to explain, “Merlin don't want me to hurt myself by doin’ magic injured. Roxy said she’d take me to the healers so we’ll see what they have to say.”  
“Wise man Merlin.”  
Eggsy nods in silent agreement.   
It turns out that even Percival is quite friendly if reserved. He's spends the meal asking Eggsy questions about his life before they fished him out of the river, how he's adjusting to a new way of life, and offers tips in response.   
Once the bowls have been cleaned in the last of the water, Roxy stands and gives her uncles farewell hugs. Then she once again wraps her hand around Eggsy’s arm and leads him away. Everyone in the camp seems to be following the same pattern. Now that breakfast is finished people are scuttling off to do their jobs and chores.   
“So…” Eggsy says to breach the conversation “I didn't know your uncles were on the council. Well I knew that they were on the council but--”  
“Not my uncles,” Roxy finishes for him, “They basically raised me and Harry trusts them. They're why I can train like I do.”  
“Must be nice, havin’ family that supports y’...”  
“It is,” Roxy agrees with a smile “I'm immensely grateful.”  
They approach the healers’ tent shortly and Roxy pauses outside in order to turn and point out Eggsy’s temporary living space.   
“Think you can remember how to get here?”  
“Yeah. I think so,” Eggsy agrees “Thanks. You're the best.”  
Roxy waves her hand dismissively, and leads him inside.   
An elderly man looks up as they enter, and his joints creak audibly as he rises. He stumps his way over to Eggsy with a cane and peers up at him.   
“I didn't expect you to be walking or awake so soon,” he croaks. “In. In. Both of you.”  
Eggsy and Roxy scramble after him as he moves off with surprising speed considering the racket his joints made. He collects jars as he goes and drops them in the seemingly unendless supply of pockets his robe contains. He ushers Eggsy into the center of the tent where the light is best and starts to fish all the jars out of his pockets.   
“Off,” he commands, gesturing at Eggsy’s borrowed trousers.   
The next few minutes pass in a blur of spindly fingers. The healer is either poking at Eggsy’s wound or smearing stinking salve on it. Eggsy does have to admit that the wound feels less stiff afterwards though.   
When he and Roxy exit the tent, Eggsy pauses and turns to her. “Any idea where my stuff would be if it weren't washed away?”  
Roxy hesitates, and bites her lip in thought. Once Eggsy is about to tell her not to worry about it if she can’t remember her face lights up.  
“It might be in the supply tent. We tend to gather things and distribute as needed. I’m sure everyone would be fine with you keeping the things you came in with however,” she explains and makes a sudden left, “It’s this way come on.”  
Eggsy follows her through a winding section of camp he’d yet to stumble across. It’s obvious that it’s used for utilities. There’s no personal touches to the tents, they’re all identical beige canvas, often stained. Roxy seems to be able to tell the difference though because she stops abruptly in front of one, and Eggsy almost crashes into her back.  
“Here it is,” she announces, “What are we looking for?”  
“A coat and a pack. The coat should have a patch of green blanket sewn into the linin’. The pack had my clothes.”  
Roxy nods and leads him inside. There’s one person, obviously meant to be guarding it so people don’t take more than their fair share, but they’re fast asleep. Roxy ignores the sight and leads him straight to the back.   
“I’ll look for coat since it stands out more than your pack. Then we can sort through clothes together,” she decides.  
They split up to search the separate sections. Roxy returns victorious five minutes later with Eggsy’s coat, and Eggsy’s heart swells. He was so worried he’d lost his last physical reminder of Daisy. He almost wishes he grabbed her on his way out too, despite knowing she probably wouldn’t have made across the river. It hurts to think she might grow up without ever knowing him.  
It takes more digging than expected to find his pack. There are several that look similar to it, and it’s only because there’s a section of Eggsy’s sewn back together with green thread that his mum was supposed to use for a new dress, that he is able to identify it at all. His clothes are easier to pick out. They’re surprisingly rough in comparison to the others; no leather or fur. Still it’s good to have them back, he wants to return the ones he is wearing now to the original owner. He tells Roxy as much.  
“ Don’t be silly. Harry picked them out for you. You can keep them.”  
“Why’d Harry pick ‘em out personal?”  
“He can be odd like that. They’re some of the nicer ones too, I think he traded a goat for a trunk of ones similar.”  
Eggsy saves that information away to ponder later and follows Roxy back outside.  
It becomes a daily routine. Eggsy wakes up, checks in with the healers, eats breakfast with Roxy and then spends the day trying to get the lay of the camp.  
Towards the end of the week he checks in with the healers again. He enters the now familiar sweet scented tent, and comes to stop in the center.  
“OI! You in here Viron?” he calls.  
The old man materializes from the deep shadows at the back of the tent, and stomps his way to Eggsy’s side.  
“What have I told you about yelling in my tent?” he grumbles. “There are potions in here that require silence.”  
“But that’s what makes me fun mate. I lighten up this old place.” Eggsy teases.  
Viron straightens, and places his hands on his hips. For a moment, he reminds Eggsy so much of his mother it’s almost frightening.  
“My ‘old place’ is light enough thank you.” Viron says severely, “Now off with your shirt so i can get a good look.”  
Eggsy obeys, and folds his shirt over his arm to keep it from being stepped on while Viron conducts his examination. The wound, once a gaping hole that made Eggsy ill to think about it, has since faded into a shiny pink scar; puckered around the edges. It’s still slightly tender when Viron presses on it, but it’s a vast improvement from where it started.  
Eggsy stays silent as Viron works his way around the wound, poking and prodding. He clucks and murmurs quietly to himself as he goes, as if he doesn't say his findings out loud they would slip from memory. It’s easy to fall into the quiet. Eventually, Viron steps back with a satisfied nod.  
“Very well. It seems Harry will be getting his battle mage after all. You can begin training as soon as you like.”  
“Yeah? You mean it?” Eggsy asks eagerly.  
“I do. It is unlikely that it would cause any damage to train. Be gone with you. Don’t make coming to me a habit young man. People have been known to develop a tolerance against healing magic,” Viron chastises.  
“I won’t. Thank you Viron,” Eggsy answers and goes darting from the tent. It feels amazing to be able to run again, like releasing a buzzing beneath his skin. He takes that energy to the meeting tent, to share his good news with Harry and Merlin.  
Eggsy strolls up to the tent but pauses to give one of Merlin’s cats a quick scratch behind the ears where it lounges in the rare bit of sun they receive between spring storms. Harry looks up from the piece of parchment he's reading as Eggsy enters. His mouth quirks up in his signature almost smile when he sees Eggsy’s grin.   
“Good news?” He asks.   
Eggsy nods and closes the distance between the entrance and the table in a few long steps. It feels amazing to stretch his legs like that again.  
“Real good. Great even! Viron says I can start trainin’ now,” Eggsy announces  
“Congratulations,” Harry says, and drops a warm hand on Eggsy’s shoulder. It sends that same thrill through Eggsy’s stomach as the first time Eggsy saw him walk into Old Maz’s tent. “I believe you will surpass even Merlin before long.”  
Eggsy goes pink around the ears and he ducks his head, “Think so?”  
“Absolutely. I said that you could do it when we were at the council meeting, and I am usually right. Despite what Merlin would have you think.”  
Eggsy snorts and grins up at Harry. “My Da used t’ tell me not t’ say things like that out loud. Said y’d get cursed.”  
“I have Merlin to protect me from curses,” Harry dismisses.  
“Are you sure he ain't the one doing the cursin’?” Eggsy jokes.   
That draws a laugh out of Harry. The good mood is contagious and it draws an even a wider smile. It's a small victory that Eggsy takes in stride. Ever since he started regularly coming to check in, Harry has been absent, focused on his duties as leader. It makes Eggsy smile to know he broke through that shell.   
“That is an excellent point,” Harry concedes. “I’m sure he has wanted to curse me a time or two when we were younger.”  
“Speakin’ of, you know where I can find him? He's been pestering me for days.”  
“He should--” Harry starts but is cut off by Merlin himself pushing the flap open.   
“Eggsy? I didn’t think I would see ye again until tomorrow,” he says.  
“Yeah I know. I didn’t mean t’ bother y’ but I figured y’d want to know,” Eggsy explains quickly.  
“Know what?” Merlin asks for clarification.  
“Eggsy has been given the all clear by the healers,” Harry butts in, “He can begin training.”  
Merlin’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise, “Is that so?”  
“Yeah. He said it were ‘It is unlikely that it would cause any damage to train’ When can we start?” he asks eagerly, and can’t help but feel like a puppy. He likes it among the Kingsmen, and wants to prove he’s worth keeping.  
“We can start tomorrow if ye like. It’s too late tonight, it is better to learn when ye are refreshed.”  
“Sure thing guv,” Eggsy agrees easily. He’s so excited to be doing something again he would agree to almost anything at this point., “What are we learnin’?”  
“That has yet to be decided,” Merlin says vaguely, “I thought I might play to your strengths. Train ye in accuracy, and let ye get used to the way magic feels again.”  
“Sounds good,” Eggsy agrees, and hovers awkwardly when there doesn’t seem much else to say. He doesn’t want to leave the comfort of the tent. There’s something about it that makes Eggsy lighter, “Right. Well I’ll go then.”  
“Nonsense,’ Harry interjects “Stay and have dinner with us.”  
“Okay,” Eggsy agrees again and grins broadly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you plantboy-elliot for challenging me to put specific phrases in so I was forced to write.

Eggsy is up at the crack of dawn, too anxious to sleep anymore. He slips into his coat and boots, and steps out into the dewy grass. The only people awake are the night watchmen, whose shift won’t end for at least another hour. Only their fires light Eggsy’s path as he walks to the meeting tent. He doesn’t know where Merlin sleeps and quite frankly, he’s too intimidated to ask. The meeting tent seems as good a place as any to wait though.   
He pushes aside the flaps and almost immediately nudges something soft. Curious, he crouches to see what it is and huffs in amusement when he finds two of Merlin’s cats snuggled together. He steps around them and works his way to the fireplace. He holds his hands out to the tinder and tries to find that bubble deep inside himself. The familiar heat suffuses his body, and a few flames shoot from his fingertips. It’s enough to set it alight.  
He settles down to wait in front of the hearth. It doesn’t take long for the cats to recognize another source of heat in the room, and come wandering over to sleep in Eggsy’s lap. He strokes their fur, and stares absently into the flame. At some point, he must have dozed off because he’s woken by Merlin’s voice.  
“That is an unusual sight,” he remarks and Eggsy sits up, rubbing his eyes.  
“What is?” he asks, voice scratchy with sleep.  
“The cats liking anyone but me.” Merlin answers. “Have ye had breakfast yet lad?”  
“Nah. Couldn’t sleep so I came here.”   
“Then have some breakfast, and then we will leave,” Merlin decides.  
A bowl of porridge later, and they begin their walk out of camp. It’s too dangerous to practice near people. Especially with Eggsy’s unpredictable magic.  
The walk invigorates Eggsy, and soon he’s walking backward in front of Merlin in order to keep up a conversation with him. Most of his questions are about magic, and Merlin answers them as best he can. Eventually they get around to the subject of Harry.  
“Rox mentioned he’s leader now because the old one stepped down. How’s that work?” Eggsy questions.  
“The leader names someone to take their place when they can no longer rule. Chester was too old to lead, so he retired. Harry took his place,” Merlin explains easily  
“Why did he give me those nice clothes to wear?”  
“He has his reasons. If ye keep pestering me with questions, I should be able to ask my own.”  
“Yeah. Alright. That’s fair,” Eggsy sighs.  
“Ye said ye could once heal bones but now ye can not heal a thing. How is that possible?”  
Eggsy’s brain flies hundreds of miles away, back to the Fringe with Dean. He can feel the tendrils of panic from years back, the first time he was caught. Remembers the desperate scramble to hide anything magical. Especially the healing magic Dean reviled the most.  
“Panic changes people,” Eggsy murmurs.  
“And ye were panicked?” Merlin prods.  
There’s an awkward pause while Eggsy decides what to say. Half of him wants to blurt everything out, tell Merlin about Dean’s rein of terror and the constant need to look over his shoulder. The other half wants to hold his past close to his chest, and leave it behind in lieu of his new life.  
“My stepdad didn’t take t’ magic very well,” Eggsy explains finally, “It’s why I’m outta practice.”  
Merlin lets out an understanding hum, and they fall silent for the first time during their walk. Eggsy slows his step, and falls in beside Merlin while they walk. The grass brushes against his shins with a gentle swish, and a warm breeze tickles the back of his neck. Merlin comes to a halt at a brook snaking its way through the tall grasses.  
“What are we doin’ here then?” Eggsy questions.  
“I promised ye we would practice your accuracy. Now take some of the grass and make a loop.” Merlin instructs.  
“Why?”  
“Just do it.”  
“Alright, Alright. Grouch,” Eggsy teases but dutifully collects the longest blades of grass he can find.  
While Merlin pokes at the bank of the brook, Eggsy ties the grass into loops. He makes a dozen or so, and forms a neat pile by his feet. He sits cross legged in the tall grass, and waits for Merlin to finish whatever it is he’s doing. The day is lovely and Eggsy does his best to soak up the sun like the plants around him.  
A few hard things fall into the grass next to his hand, and Eggsy opens his eyes to look at them. He frowns at the stones and scoops them up from the grass.  
“What’re we doin’ with stones?” Eggsy asks and Merlin crosses his arms.  
“Do ye always ask this many questions?”  
“Yes,” Eggsy answers and grins shamelessly at Merlin.  
Merlin sighs and for a second looks likes he’s planning to strangle Eggsy then and there. He pinches the bridge of his nose, and takes a deep breath as if praying to the gods for patience. Finally he lowers his hand and gestures for Eggsy to stand.  
“If ye can levitate things then ye can move them. I want ye to move them through the hoops. I will levitate them so ye can focus solely on your agility,” Merlin explains.  
Eggsy pushes himself to his feet with a small groan and passes the grass hoops to Merlin. They bob weightlessly in the air, and it reminds Eggsy of how he used to entertain Daisy. He thinks of her sweet baby-giggles as he turns the stone over in his hand.  
It’s smooth but there’s a crack that runs down the middle. It throws the balance off ever so slightly, and he registers that he’ll need to correct for that when they float. He takes a deep breath in through his nose, and reaches for the bubble. He can feel it butting up against the surface of his mind, and directs the energy outward. Once it starts it’s easy to keep the energy flowing and soon the stone lifts from his open palm.  
Eggsy opens his eyes, and focuses the energy buoying the stone towards the first loop. It’s slow going at first. Eggsy can’t remember the last time he ever did anything this controlled. Usually when he was entertaining Daisy he just had to keep them moving lazily in her eyesight. The stone passes through the first hoop, and Eggsy glances at Merlin for instruction.  
“Down the whole line,” Merlin prompts, and Eggsy refocuses.  
He brings the energy back towards himself, and watches the stone follow sedately through the second ring. Irritated by its slow pace he adjusts his stance and presses with more energy. It feels like trying to shove a thread through a needle. It glances off the opening several times, then finally Eggsy pushes just right and the stone puts on a new burst of speed through the third and fourth hoops.  
He pauses at the end and looks over at Merlin again, “That good?”  
“Could be better. The start was slow. I need ye to unravel a little more of your magic. Can ye do that?” Merlin asks.  
“I can try,” Eggsy swears, and bites his lip in concentration.  
He stretches his mind as deep as it will go, and pulls on another loose thread of magic. It twines with the few already in play, and strengthens them. He pulls on the rock again, passing it through the line of hoops again twice as fast. He doesn’t wait for Merlin’s instruction this time. He pauses at the end of the line, tugs on anymore magic that comes loose, and runs the rings. He repeats the process again and again, until he can do it in a second flat.  
“That’s enough for that exercise,” Merlin stops him, “I’m going to start moving them now.”  
Eggsy gives him a sharp nod to show that heard, too focused on keeping the magic crackling at his fingertips to respond verbally. The bright green rings begin to dance in and out of line, and Eggsy focuses on them one at a time. He makes it through the first hoop but the stone bumps into the second, and he’s forced to start again. It takes three more tries before he can make it through the second.  
He lets out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding, and rolls his shoulders to relieve the tension. Settled once again, he waits for his opportunity for the third. The lip dips just below the rock and Eggsy darts it through quickly. He runs the course successfully three more times before Merlin calls for a break.  
Eggsy settles the stone back on the ground, then collapses next to it. The magic buzzes beneath his skin, and it pulses with his heartbeat.  
“Why am I so tired?” he whines.  
Merlin chuckles, and passes Eggsy a chunk of bread and some cheese. Eggsy pushes himself back into a sitting position and wolfs them down without thinking.  
“Ye are tired because ye have been working hard lad. It takes quite a bit of energy to do what ye have been doing all afternoon,” Merlin answers. “It is worth it though. I can see improvement already.”  
“Promise?” Eggsy groans, “Cause if I’m not then there ain’t a reason for me to keep it up.”  
“Yes I promise. Would ye like more to eat?”  
“Please,” Eggsy huffs and works his way through another hunk of bread, more slowly this time. Once he’s finished, Merlin directs him to stand once again.  
“Accuracy at distance,” Merlin announces shortly, and sets the hoops to bobbing several paces away, “I want ye to repeat the first exercise at this distance. I’ll move them further when ye can do it successfully.”  
“Alright. Let’s go then,” Eggsy grunts, and squares his shoulders. It’s easier to pull the magic up now that it’s been released. He hurls the rock towards the first hoop but it bumps the side, and he’s forced to pull it back. He heeds Merlin’s murmured advice to calm down, and tries again. He reaches out with another tendril of magic until he can feel Merlin’s magic rolling off of the hoops. He works his magic around and through that feeling; the stone sails through with ease.  
Each time Eggsy completes the pass successfully four times, Merlin moves the hoops back. They do this until the sun starts to dip below the horizon. It takes until Merlin calls time before Eggsy realizes how exhausted he is. It’s like his magic has been sustaining him but now that he isn’t actively using it, his body is screaming for a break.  
“Gods,” Eggsy mumbles and goes staggering sideways. Merlin catches him with a small grunt.  
“Easy lad. Let’s get ye back to camp. Won’t do to have ye passing out on me.”  
Eggsy leans on Merlin most of the way back, too exhausted to carry himself properly. Merlin doesn’t seem to mind though. He keeps a steadying arm around Eggsy’s waist until they’re inside the meeting tent. Then he lets Eggsy collapse into a chair, and passes him a skin of water. Eggsy gulps it down so quickly he almost feels ill.  
A bowl of stew appears in his lap, and he digs in without pausing to breathe. He’s so focused on filling the sucking void in his stomach, he doesn’t notice Harry walk in. He also doesn’t register that Harry and Merlin are staring at him, slightly nauseated by the way he’s cramming food in his mouth. When he finally he slows down, he can finally hear them speaking.  
“I take it you worked him hard today,” Harry deadpans.  
“Aye. But I didn’t think I worked him hard enough to cause this,” Merlin murmurs.  
“How out of shape is he?” Harry asks aghast.  
“He mentioned his stepfather didn’t take to it,” Merlin answers. “But I thought he had continued to practice in secret.”  
“Interesting how this stepfather keeps coming up,” Harry remarks but pauses as Eggsy looks up.  
He leaves the remarks about Dean alone, and instead holds up his empty bowl. He’s starting to feel level headed again, but he’s still starving.  
“Is it okay if I have more?” he asks.  
“Of course,” Harry responds immediately. He collects Eggsy’s bowl and strides over to the fire where the pot of stew is boiling away. He ladles up a fresh bowl, then hands it back. It occurs to Eggsy that Harry seems to have done a turnaround from the man who refused to sit at his level the first time they met.  
“Thank guv,” Eggsy sighs, and starts to shovel it in with his bread, “Is it really a problem that I’m this tired?”  
“No,” Merlin says hesitantly. “Or at least it wouldn’t be, if ye were far less powerful than ye are.”  
“I told ye that I weren’t as talented as y’ thought,” Eggsy points out, swallowing his mouthful of stew.  
Harry comes to sit across from him. He has that serious look on his face that people always adopt when they’re about to dig into Eggsy’s life. He’s seen that look on people’s faces since he first walked into the schoolhouse with a black eye.  
“Eggsy, exactly how… opposed to magic was this stepfather of yours?” he asks, obviously trying to be tactful.  
“Couldn’t use it at all unless I wanted a nasty beating,” Eggsy states bluntly, and goes back to eating. He pointedly ignores the look Merlin and Harry share.  
Eventually they seem to decide it isn’t worth following up on at the moment, and Merlin joins them. They loosen up after a few bites of food, and soon Merlin is sharing hilarious stories of Harry at Eggsy’s age. Eggsy enjoys them but he finds himself falling asleep sitting up. Rather than excuse himself to his tent, he falls asleep right there. Someone, Eggsy suspects Harry, covers him with a fur, brushes his hair back from his forehead, and blows out the lamps, just leaving the fire burning to keep the tent warm.  
Merlin gives Eggsy a break the next day when he wakes with a raging headache. He spends the day sleeping in Viron’s tent to recover. He vaguely recalls Merlin coming in, and discussions of ‘burnout’ but Eggsy is too exhausted to listen. Harry comes in too, with a mug of some warm broth. Eggsy can faintly remember Harry standing by his side looking worried, but that could be a result of the headache.  
Merlin takes it more carefully for the next few weeks, until Eggsy can show an increase in strength.  
It’s odd to Eggsy to have this part of him free and pulsing with power. For the longest time he’d had it closed off, like a boarded up window preventing sunlight from coming in. Now though, the boards have been ripped free and the sunlight is pouring in, and wind is blowing away the cobwebs. He feels lighter than he ever has before.  
That attitude holds until Merlin decides to have Eggsy take a whack at healing magic.  
“Merlin, I love ya but can we please take a rest?” Eggsy implores and slumps against a tree at the edge of the clearing.   
“Absolutely not. Ye haven't even tried.” Merlin dismisses, “Ye aren't leaning into the magic. Ye are holding it back. Try it again.”  
Eggsy drags himself upright again with a groan and takes a deep breath. He's been trying to put this stupid stick back together for hours now without any luck.   
Merlin claimed that if Eggsy once knew how to mend broken bones, he should be able to learn it again. They started with broken sticks because Merlin didn't trust him with actual people yet. Eggsy understands why, he'd probably hurt someone if his magic suddenly decided to flare. Still he gestures for Merlin to repeat the words of the spell.   
He holds the two broken ends together and settles into the wide stance Merlin told him to adopt. He stares at the fracture and blows out all the air he's holding. He reaches for that bubbling feeling in his gut, trying to remember what it was like as a child. When he feels what could maybe be a tingle, he says the spell.   
“Bi gu h-iomlan,” Eggsy hisses. There's a small white spark at the broken ends and for a second he thinks he's done it. He let's go of one end, prepared to hold it up to Merlin in victory, but as let's go the stick falls apart again. He throws it down in frustration.   
“I can't do it Merlin!” he yells.   
“Yes ye can.” Merlin growls, and takes a step forward, “Ye just aren't focusing!”  
“I am!” Eggsy snaps. “How would y’ even know!”  
“How would I know?” Merlin barks and his hands fly out in frustration.   
Eggsy flinches hard. It all comes flooding back. The years of hiding, and denying his gift. Dean’s hands are closed around his throat. He can't breath. He's gasping for air, desperate to get away. Everything is going black and he can smell smoke. He's going to die.  
“Eggsy?” asks a gentle voice.   
Eggsy’s eyes fly open and he drags in a big gulping breath. He looks up, sure that it's going to be his mum nursing another black eye for stepping in again. Then Merlin’s face comes swimming into view. To Eggsy’s horror he feels his face crumple and he lets out a strangled noise. Hot tears splash down his face and Merlin looks painfully confused, but he pulls Eggsy into a gentle hug.   
“I'm sorry!” Eggsy sobs “I didn’t--”  
Merlin cuts him off with a gentle shushing noise and runs a soothing hand through Eggsy’s hair. “Just be still.”  
“I'm tryin’! I swear! I'll do better!” Eggsy rushes with a desperate shake of his head.   
“Ye are afraid of your own magic lad,” Merlin murmurs “That cannae end well. It has already caused trouble. Ye set the whole clearing ablaze.”  
Eggsy swallows and takes the opportunity to properly take in the clearing. There are vast swathes of grass burned to ashes, and many of the smaller patches where flame didn’t touch directly, are brown and brittle.   
“I'm sorry,” he says again and Merlin helps him to stand.   
“It is nothing. I think it's time to get back to camp.”  
Merlin keeps a gentle arm around Eggsy’s shoulders the whole walk back to the camp. The touch settles Eggsy’s nerves a little, and Merlin’s magic prevents the sporadic bursts of magic still flying from Eggsy’s fingertips from doing any harm.   
Eggsy’s elbow bumps Merlin’s ribs and Merlin lets out a soft hiss of pain that stops Eggsy in his tracks. He steps away from Merlin and turns to look at him properly. A section of Merlin’s shirt is burned away and the skin beneath is raw.   
“I burned you?” Eggsy gasps.   
“Aye but only a little. I will be fine lad,” Merlin soothes.   
“How are y’ gonna be fine?! I fuckin’ burned you!” Eggsy cries.   
Merlin sighs and gathers Eggsy close again, “It is hardly the first time I've been burned. I will heal. It is nae a bad one.”  
“Does it hurt?” Eggsy asks.   
“Aye but that means it isn't bad. It's when there's a suspicious lack of pain that ye need to worry.”  
“Promise y’ll be okay?”  
“I promise.”  
Eggsy brings Merlin straight to Viron when they make it back to camp. Despite Merlin’s assurances that he’s fine, Eggsy can’t shake the feeling he’s irreparably damaged the only person willing to teach him.  
Viron takes one look at his face, and points at the entrance of the tent, “Out with you. He won't’ heal with you hovering like a gnat.”  
“But I--” Eggsy starts to protest but Merlin cuts him off.   
“Eggsy lad, go get Harry. He should be here,” he insists.  
Eggsy takes off running.


	5. Chapter 5

Eggsy idly runs a few blades of grass between his fingers, while he and Merlin take a break. Ever since the incident with the burn, they’d been taking time out to reacquaint Eggsy with basic magic. It had helped when they began to tackle the harder things, like stopping a stone in mid air. Now though, Eggsy is bored. No matter what Merlin throws at him, he can manage within a few tries, and he wants a bigger challenge.  
“Merlin?” he asks quietly.  
“Yes?”  
“When are we gonna start on battle magic?”  
That draws Merlin’s attention properly. He looks up from where he’d been digging runes into a piece of wood, and he sets aside his tools. Eggsy stares at him mildly, not backing down from his question.  
“When ye are ready, these basics will help ye.”   
“When am I gonna be ready then? That’s why Harry let me stay yeah? Because he needed another battle mage? I know I ain’t gonna be a proper mage but I still need to do what I can.”  
“If ye want to learn battle magic, ye will have to convince Harry,” Merlin answers.  
“Why Harry?” Eggsy inquires and Merlin sighs.  
“Because the git wants to be in charge of everything. Including my pupil.”   
Eggsy tucks that information away as they get back to work.  
When they get back to camp, Eggsy’s first order of business is to find Harry. It’s late afternoon, so that means he’s making his rounds to check in with all of the people. Eggsy has never met anyone more dedicated to the welfare of others. He stumbles across Harry drinking tea with the mother of the Joyce family.  
Eggsy hovers just far enough away to not be spotted, then strides to catch Harry when he stands. Harry looks mildly surprised to see him.  
“Is everything alright Eggsy?”  
“Er… yeah. I wanted to ask you something.”  
“Ask away, dear boy.”  
“Y’ let me stay because y’ thought I could be useful in battle right?”  
“I believe that’s the idea yes.”  
“Merlin told me that if I wanted to start training battle magic, I’d have to convince y’ to let me.”  
“That’s true,” Harry agrees mildly.  
“Is this cause I burned Merlin that one time?” Eggsy demands, “It weren’t even my fault!”  
“I’m afraid that’s part of it. I worry about whether you are capable of controlling your magic properly.”  
“That’s bullshit. I can.” Eggsy says, jaw jutting stubbornly, “I can prove it too.”  
“How do you propose you resolve this issue?”  
“Come with me and Merlin tomorrow. I can do a demonstration. Show you I got it under control, and no more slip ups.”  
Harry pauses mid-step, obviously considering Eggsy’s proposal. His face is as inscrutable as ever, and Eggsy finds himself praying to every god he’s ever heard of that Harry says yes. It would mean everything to be able to prove himself.  
“Fuck it,” Harry sighs, “I’ll come.”  
Eggsy’s face splits into a huge grin, and he just resists hugging him around the middle.  
“Fuck yeah. I’ll see you then,” Eggsy gushes. “I’m gonna go tell Merlin.”  
*  
Eggsy paces up and down the stretch of field, boots crushing the summer grasses under his feet. The sleeves of his borrowed linen shirt are shoved up above his elbows, but does nothing to stop the blistering heat running along his skin. He’s so nervous he can't tell how much of it is the sun, and how much of it is nerves and bubbling magic. Harry is late, and Eggsy is terrified he won’t show. Merlin seems largely unconcerned.   
“He said he would come,” Eggsy affirms, pausing in his frantic pacing.  
“Then he will be here lad. But ye can never expect Harry on time.”  
Eggsy sighs and starts pacing again, this time chewing on his thumbnail. It brings back memories from when he was young and his mum would lightly smack his hand away from his mouth when she caught him at it.  
He glances at the horizon and groans in relief when he sees Harry crossing down the hill.  
“Oh thank the gods. He’s here, Merlin.”  
“I told ye he would come. He’s just an inconsiderate arse,” Merlin huffs, but he still stands up as Harry approaches.  
“I apologize for my tardiness gentlemen,” Harry announces and it draws a snort from Merlin.  
“Of course ye do. Worried the poor boy sick.”  
“Shut up! He did not.” Eggsy cries indignantly, “I just wanted to get started so we weren’t out here after dark.”  
“Then I apologize for worrying you about the dark,” Harry teases, and turns to Merlin, “How are you running this Merlin? I was promised a show.”  
“I thought we would run through each of the exercises we’ve been practising. Then allow Eggsy to demonstrate a few tricks he stumbled upon.”  
“Stones first?” Eggsy asks, and Merlin nods.  
Eggsy gathers what he needs and moves several feet away. He sets the hoops of grass to bobbing and spinning, then when he feels as though he has enough control he levitates the stones. They weave their way through and around without missing a beat. It’s easy enough to start juggling the hoops and weaving the stones at the same time. To Eggsy’s satisfaction, he hears a surprised oh from Harry.  
He settles the objects back on the ground, and rolls his shoulders to free any tightening. He stretches his hands out to his side, and concentrates on the middle distance. Just like when he was little, he can feel the magic tumbling down his insides, and bubbling up in his throat.  
“Gaoithe!” Eggsy intones. Instantly, a wind kicks up and blows across the field. He reels it in, and gives it a particular twist. A whirlwind springs up at Harry’s feet, and sprays him with dirt. He doesn’t look particularly pleased but it makes Eggsy feel better.  
When he finishes with the wind, he demonstrates how well he can start and control fires, mend things that are broken or torn, and conjure a ball of light. With each passing exercise, Harry seems to grow more impressed. It warms Eggsy deep inside and makes the magic come forth even more freely. It seems like no time at all until Eggsy is done. He’s riding the high of magic and when he finally comes to a stop the sun is setting.  
He leans forward, hands on his knees to catch his breath. He glances between Merlin and Harry. Both men seem dazed by the dazzling display. Eggsy had hoped to impress Harry, and Harry alone; Merlin had seen him practice all of these a hundred times or more. His heart is in his throat as he waits.  
Merlin rises. A grin spreads across his face. “Eggsy that was fucking spectacular!” he yells, and claps Eggsy on the shoulder.  
Harry joins them, a full smile on his face. “That was beautiful Eggsy,” he says seriously. “You have my full permission to begin practising battle magic as soon as Merlin is ready.”  
Merlin wraps an arm around Eggsy’s shoulder, and pulls him close like a friend.  
“I say we celebrate the good news. Drinks?”  
“Drinks!” Harry agrees enthusiastically.  
They stroll off into the twilight. The wind is cool against Eggsy’s face, but the ground is still warm from the sunshine. It makes for a lovely walk back, and by the time they get to camp, Harry has even relaxed enough to add his arm to the one around Eggsy’s shoulders.   
They don’t make it further than the outer ring of tents before Roxy comes sprinting up to them.  
“Harry, you’re needed,” she gasps.  
“I said I would be taking the day off,” Harry reminds her.  
“I know,” Roxy insists with emphatic nodding, “But it’s important. He’s invaded the southern border.”  
Harry’s arm slips from Eggsy’s shoulders, leaving him feeling cold.  
“Shit. I’m right behind you,” Harry promises, and turns to Eggsy and Merlin, “That training might start earlier than we planned. Be prepared to move in a week’s time.”  
With that last instruction he strides off after Roxy.  
“What’s wrong?” Eggsy demands, “Why’s Harry so worried?”  
“It’s nothing ye need to worry about yet,” Merlin assures him. “We start training with battle magic tomorrow. Better get some rest.”  
“If we’re gonna be fighting--” Eggsy starts but Merlin glares him down.  
“I appreciate your concern Eggsy, but ye are not actually on the council. Ye will be privy to necessary information when it comes time for it. Good night” Merlin snaps, and strides off in the same direction as Harry.  
Good mood ruined, Eggsy slumps his way back to the small tent that had been set up the last time they moved. He flops down on his pallet and stares blankly at the pink and violet ceiling.  
Realistically he understands where Merlin was coming from. He’s an outsider still. He’s been working hard with Merlin to develop his magic, but that doesn’t mean Merlin is willing to blindly trust him. At the same time he feels betrayed. As one of only two magic users, and someone who will have quite a hand in battle, he should know what they’re getting into ahead of time.   
He stays put for a while but his poor impulse control comes back to haunt him. He stands up and bolts for the meeting tent, before he can think better of it. He comes to a halt outside, and for the first time considers how to do this without looking like a total ass. Muffled voices can be heard vaguely through the canvas, and even outside they sound tense.  
Eventually, Eggsy decides his best bet is to get someone to notice him. He moves a few feet away, levitates a pebble and bounces it idly against the canvas; each time making a small thunk. He gets away with it twice before a shadow detaches from the muddled clump in the middle. Judging by the height it’s Roxy.   
Sure enough her blonde head pokes out of the tent. When she sees him, she lets out the longest sigh he’s ever heard emerge from any person.  
“Eggsy, in case you hadn’t noticed, we’re busy,” she points out sarcastically.  
“Yeah. I know. I was hoping y’ could get me in?” he pleads, batting his lashes at her.  
“Are you fucking kidding me?” she hisses “What possibly makes you think I could do that?”  
“Look Rox, I understand that I ain’t one of y’. But y’... all of y’ are my family now. If I’ve been workin’ this hard t’ eventually protect you, I should know what’s happenin’.”  
Her lips purse in annoyance, then she rolls her eyes and disappears back into the tent. Eggsy waits with bated breath for his answer. His heart leaps into his throat when Harry emerges next.  
“Roxy says you want to listen in to the meeting,” he states.  
“Yeah. I do. I want to know what we’re up against,” Eggsy insists.  
Harry turns, and holds the flap open for him. Eggsy darts through before he can change his mind. It’s like the first night he was awake in camp, but this time everyone’s faces are pinched with worry. He stands at the far end of the table again, and Harry retakes his place at the head.  
“We’re the first line of defense for Raointean Mòra.’ Harry says, and the toneless way he says it suggests he’s said it a hundred times already. “It is our responsibility to protect the others who do not have our artillery.”  
“We know this Harry,” Percival speaks out, “The question isn’t about whether we need to react, but rather if we can. Most of our warriors are on pilgrimage or already defending the borders. We only have a hundred with us.”  
“How many men does the report say he has?” Merlin asks.  
“A thousand,” Roxy chimes in helpfully.  
“Well shit,” Harry groans. “Does anyone have any suggestions?”  
“We could send a runner out ot the peaceful borders, and ask them to return.” Charlie suggests, “As well as the other tribes that we’re on good terms with?”  
“A good starting point. It would increase our numbers but that could take too long,” Harry answers.  
The table falls silent. Everyone seems to scrambling for a solution and coming up empty. Despite promising himself he would simply observe and gather information, Eggsy decides to jump in.  
“Would coming up behind work? I don’t know quite what’s happening, but circling behind and takin’ someone by surprise usually works.” With Dean’s goons anyway.  
Charlie sneers at him of course but everyone else seems to be considering it.   
Harry looks to Merlin. “Given his considerable magics, would sneaking up be possible? Or would he see us?”  
“It is worth considering.” Merlin says slowly, thinking aloud, “Even if he could see us, we’re closer to his men than he is. It could allow us to corral his army. Especially if we convince the others to meet us on the far side.”  
“I’m the fastest rider of us. I’ll go,” James volunteers. “Besides, I have yet to meet anyone who says no to me.”  
It draws a small chuckle from the group. The comedy is obviously needed as the tension lightens. The atmosphere in the tent is no longer suffocating worry.  
“Very well. We send James now, to return in one week. If enough other tribes have agreed to aid us, we will ride south.” Harry decides, “We begin taking stock of weapons tomorrow. Dismissed.”  
Everyone shuffles out, even Merlin, but Eggsy hangs behind. He wants more information about what they’re facing, and Harry hasn’t left yet. The worry makes him look older than he is, casting deep shadows beneath his eyes.  
“Harry?” Eggsy calls softly, and Harry looks over at him like he forgot he existed.  
“What is it, Eggsy?”  
“Who’re we fighting?”  
“Emperor Valentine.” Harry practically falls into his seat, and gestures Eggsy to join him, “We’ve been spared from his conquering until this year. Suddenly he seems to target exactly where we are weakest.”  
“Yeah? How you think he’s managing that then? With magic?” Eggsy asks, drawing his knees to his chest.  
“Perhaps,” Harry answers. “I wouldn’t put him above it. The rumors are he likes to dabble in black magic.”  
“I’m guessing he wants to spread that influence. That’s why he’s conquering?”  
“Well you’re full of surprises.” Harry says warmly, “That would be our current theory.”  
“If he wants to spread black magic why’s he goin’ through no-man’s land? The whole point of the name is that no one is here. It woulda made more sense to go west to Shefourian Kingdom,” Eggsy questions.  
“We think he’s trying to make an alliance with some of the northern kingdoms. For that he has to cut through us.”  
Eggsy shakes his head and they lapse into silence. If he had known just how powerful this man was, he would have kept his mouth shut. He doesn’t want to be responsible for the lives lost if it goes belly up. Not when he’s finally earned Harry’s trust.  
“Do y’ think James will be back in time?” Eggsy murmurs, and Harry seems to deflate.   
“All we can do is hope Eggsy,” he answers, sounding defeated. “He's a fast rider.”  
They fall quiet again, but Eggsy stays. Harry hasn't kicked him out, and frankly he looks like he could use someone to just be with him. The light the lamps cast across the tent make their shadows dance.  
“Harry?” Eggsy pipes up again.   
“Yes?” Harry responds, groggily.   
“How did y’ know to come get me from the river? Y’ said I called but I don't remember doing anything like that,” Eggsy questions.   
Harry sits up to take a good look at Eggsy properly, “You have no idea how powerful you are do you?”  
Eggsy’s face scrunches in confusion and he shakes his head, “I'm just a fast learner.”  
“Eggsy, Merlin hasn't taught you a single spell. You've just been learning to control it instead of the other way around. Your magic was strong enough to reach me, while you were unconscious, thousands of miles away. One second I'm discussing supplies with Percival, the next I see you tumbling into the river and being swept away. I thought I might be going mad but I gathered Viron, and rode off. You were tangled in the weeds and half drowned.”  
“I didn't know I could do that. I just cast somethin’ to keep from drowning,” Eggsy explains. “Guess that turned into a scream for help.”  
“I am glad it happened,” Harry says. He stands up, and walks to a trunk in the corner. He pulls out a glass bottle and two mugs, and pours a healthy amount into each. He passes one to Eggsy as he returns to his seat.   
Eggsy takes a sip, and lets out a happy sighs at the honeyed flavor of mead. They go quiet again as the work on their drinks.   
“Why?” Eggsy asks suddenly, “Are you glad I mean.”  
“Because we need you. If we ride against Emperor Valentine, which I suspect we will, we need someone with your power and potential.”  
“You ‘n Merlin seem to think I'm your savior.”  
“You might just be my boy,” Harry murmurs, and once again stands up, “If you'll excuse me, I think I will go to bed. I expect tomorrow to be a long day.”  
“Yeah. Of course mate. I'll see you tomorrow before Merlin and I leave for the day yeah?”  
Harry inclined his head in agreement, and sweeps out of the tent. Eggsy finishes off the last few mouthfuls of his mead and he stands up, ready for bed as well. He extinguishes the lamps before he leaves so that no oil is wasted, then starts the walk back to his tent.   
When he went crashing into that river, he thought at best he'd manage to survive until he could make over the northern border. Then scrap and scramble for money and food. At worst he thought he'd crack his head on a rock and drown before he even made it across. Never in a million years did he think he'd be eating with leaders, developing his magic, and riding into battle.   
This time when he lays down on his pallet, he's asleep between one breath and another.


	6. Chapter 6

It seems like the entire tribe is out to see James off the next morning. Everyone is packed together, and so quiet the bees can be heard buzzing about the yellow and orange flowers. The buzz seems to be echoed in the nervous energy of everyone watching. As James checks his saddle bags one last time, and adjusts the straps, there’s a sense of finality to it. If he does make it across miles of other, more hostile, groups, when he comes back it will mean war or the crumbling of Raointean Mòra.  
James rides off into the dawn, with a dramatic farewell. He promises, with intense passion in his voice, that he will ride to the very ends of Raointean Mòra to find someone to aid them. That he refuses to let them die. He ends it with a spectacular war cry, making everyone laugh. Eggsy is left with the distinct impression that James was trying his best to cheer them all up more than anything. Despite knowing him only a handful of weeks, that worries Eggsy. James is only dramatic intentionally when there’s actually something to worry about. The rest of the time it’s just his personality.  
Eggsy walks over to where Merlin and Harry are standing, watching their friend ride into the unknown. They could probably use some time to come to terms with what’s happening, but Eggsy can’t wait. If he’s going to be any use in battle, he needs to start training now.  
“We gonna get to work?” he asks softly.  
They look at each other, as if communicating with subtle dilations of their pupils. Then Harry inclines his head, and they turn in unison.  
“Let’s go” Merlin decides. “You too Harry. There is nae a reason ye can’t plan your war, and give me direction at the same time.”  
“Very well. I’ll retrieve my maps,” Harry agrees.  
“Avoid anything flammable.” Merlin adds before Harry can take off, “Besides ye have those maps memorized.”  
“Fine,” Harry grumbles.  
Merlin leads them even further away from the camp than he usually does. It sends a tingle down Eggsy’s spine. They’re getting into serious shit if they can’t be anywhere near another living soul.  
Eggsy’s imagination runs away with him. He has visions of learning to raise giant walls of fire, with streams of flame that wrap around an enemy like serpent. He can see himself opening yawning ravines under foot, giving no one a chance to escape.  
He has to admit that while he wants to be useful, the thought of hurting others, even those wanting to do harm leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. He never planned to use his magic in that way. It’s always been the soothing part of his soul. It’s intimidating to see if he is even capable of using it to hurt.  
They come to a stop at a lake, apparently Merlin isn’t taking any chances. Harry settles on the nearest boulder, and watches Merlin and Eggsy idly.  
“We’re going to begin with something ye are good at. Fire,” Merlin explains.  
“Right. Sounds good,” Eggsy says with a jerky nod. “What kind are we starting with?”  
“Throwing.” Harry pipes up, “If nothing else the flames will frighten the horses and the men will be bucked.”  
“Throwing,” Merlin repeats to Eggsy. “Do ye think ye can form the fire into a ball. Like with the light.”  
“Only one way to find out,” Eggsy jokes, voice tight.  
He closes his eyes, drawing on the heat. It’s easy enough to bring the fire to his finger tips, he’s been doing it for years. The tricky bit is getting it to wrap in on itself and continue to burn. He takes it a tongue at a time. When one flickers up, he grabs it and makes it curl. Finally with the last tongue the word spews from his mouth like it always has done before. When he opens his eyes, there’s a ball of flame, floating a centimeter above his palm.  
Merlin nods approvingly, “Again. I want ye to do it until ye can do it in a second flat.”  
Eggsy stands in place, conjuring the ball again and again. He does it hundreds of times, and each time he does it he can feel it becoming easier. When he can conjure it just by thinking, he knows he can stop.  
“What am I aiming at?” he asks Merlin.  
“That boulder,” Merlin instructs, and gestures to the biggest one against one edge of the lake.  
Eggsy faces the boulder, conjures the ball, and throws like he would if he was tossing something to a friend. He could move it with his magic but it seems more natural to use his arm. Merlin doesn’t correct him for it. Although he does click his tongue when the ball falls short. Eggsy conjures another, and throws with all his strength. It arcs over the boulder with a slight hiss.  
He does it again, and this time he gets it. He throws with that force again, moves up to throwing multiple at a time. He makes them bigger, smaller, makes them spin, and fan. He knows the importance of getting comfortable with a new facet of magic.  
He does indeed move onto walls by the end of the day. They’re small, and a bit flimsy but it’s a start. Merlin assures him that they will be much stronger tomorrow when he hasn’t drained his energy throwing fire all afternoon.  
“I think that’s enough, Merlin,” Harry speaks up, as the sun begins to dip below the horizon. “We can’t afford for exhaustion.”  
“Quite right,” Merlin agrees, and calls for a stop.  
Eggsy is disgusting by the time they finish. He’s soaked through with sweat from exertion, heat from the sun, and the heat from the fire itself. There are patches where the sweat has dried tacky, and sealed ash and dirt to his skin. He can’t imagine crawling onto his pallet with this much grime.  
Merlin and Harry have already started walking by the time Eggsy calls out “Hang on!”  
“What is it Eggsy?” Harry asks.  
“I needa clean up. I’m gross,” Eggsy explains, and strips his shirt off. His trousers and pants are next. The water of the lake is blissfully freezing when he dives in. He uses some of the sand off the bank to scrape off the stickier patches.  
Harry shoots him odd looks the whole way back.  
They move on to breaking the next day, and they start with dead branches that Eggsy has to drag to them. Merlin always makes him do the heavy lifting.  
“In half Eggsy,” Merlin says by way of instruction.  
Eggsy spends the morning breaking the branches into smaller and smaller bits. He stops when the slivers reach the length of his pinky. Then they move on to doing the same to rocks.  
Surprisingly, Eggsy finds them easier. Perhaps because Merlin had him work with the material so much at the beginning. He reduces massive boulders to the size of Merlin’s fist. It’s a more of a defensive magic than the fire. It means he can reduce any boulders flung at them by Valentine’s army.  
Harry smiles at him warmly on the way back. “You are amazing dear boy.”  
“Watcha talkin’ about?” Eggsy snorts.  
“You have improved so much in such a short while. You really have done Merlin proud. Done us both proud,” Harry explains, and Eggsy can’t help the blush that rises.  
All he wants is to make Harry proud. Ever since the morning he strode into the tent and offered him a place to stay, Eggsy has been striving to make Harry see he’s worth the faith put in him. It warms him inside to know he’s done that.  
Eggsy uses the skills he learns to keep track of when James is supposed to return.   
He’s meant to be back in four days when Eggsy learns to weaponize plants. It turns out if you ask nicely, plants will do what you ask. Grasses will tangle in knots and go stiff, trees will drop branches into the path of oncomers. They’ll also grab people and whisk them away into the highest branches. Eggsy thinks that will not only be useful to stop Valentine’s men, but for their own archers.  
When there’s three days left, Eggsy learns how to use water. He learns to freeze it, and he can make huge bubbles of the stuff. They float across the sky like bizarre amorphous birds. He takes great pleasure in releasing one right on Harry’s head. The mood in camp had been ratcheting up the tension, Harry catching the worst of it. It’s worth being tossed into the lake clothes and all, to hear Harry laughing.  
With two days to go, Eggsy can tell everyone is beginning to worry. James still has time, but no one can seem to shake the feeling he should be back by now. He’s the fastest rider in the group. If there’s anyone who can make the rounds in less than a week, it’s him.  
Eggsy learns to make dust storms that day. He can make the dirt so thick in the air that it blocks out the sun for anyone below it. He’s never done this magic in his life and it’s exhilarating in a way the basic stuff never was.  
The first tribes start arriving that night and it adds maybe another hundred fifty to their numbers. They’re big burly men from near the northern border. Eggsy is fascinated by their beards. Both on the Fringe, and in the Kingsman, beards aren’t common. At most there’s a light scruff. These men have big wiry ones that hide part of their faces. By the end of the day close to three hundred have joined them and still more are trailing in at night fall.  
He ends up next to Fiske at dinner. Everyone sits packed close together in front of the fires, but Eggsy is still running hot from all the magic he used so he sits away with his bowl of stew. Fiske joins him. He’s taller than Merlin, and his arms are the size of tree trunks and banded in tattoos. His beard is as red-brown and bushy as a fox.  
“Seem awfully small to be of much use around here,” he teases, eyes crinkled in a smile.  
“More useful’n I look then bruv,” Eggsy shoots back.  
“I see, what’s it that you do?” he asks  
“Magic,” Eggsy murmurs and lets a few cracks of lightning arc off his fingers.  
Fiske seems momentarily caught off guard. Eggsy is used to it, they’ve run into one or two other tribes as they’ve moved and he’s been mistaken as a bed boy before. Fiske bows his head.  
“Magic is a gift from the gods,” he says softly. “It’s a great honor to be one blessed.”  
“Come off it,” Eggsy snorts. “What do you do?”  
“Swordman,” he answers.  
“Explains the arms,” Eggsy laughs, and Fiske flexes for him.  
“Like ‘em?”  
“Fuck yeah.”  
“Want to see them up close?” Fiske murmurs, and Eggsy drags him in the direction of his tent.  
Fiske is lovely. He’s big, with rough hands, but surprisingly gentle. He seems to think Eggsy is something precious. He doesn’t flop an arm over Eggsy when they’re finished like the men back on the Fringe did. He holds Eggsy close, and lets Eggsy use his massive chest as a pillow.  
Despite probably the best night of his life so far, all Eggsy can think about is Harry. When Fiske kisses him, Eggsy finds himself imagining someone slimmer and more wiry. He wonders what it would be like to kiss someone older, and without a beard. It’s the most bizarre thing.  
Even more bizarre is the way Harry looks at Fiske the next morning, when he and Eggsy emerge from Eggsy’s tent. Eggsy’s mum used to say his glare could curdle milk. That’s the exact look Harry gives Fiske. If Fiske was milk, he would be thoroughly curdled. For the life of him Eggsy can’t tell why. He decides to blame it on the stress of waiting on James, and the other tribes.  
Even Merlin seems distracted during training. Granted, they’re mostly running through all he’s learned this week, with an occasional addition. It doesn’t require much concentration on Merlin’s part but it’s still obvious that he keeps glancing out to the horizon. He looks grim, even for him. Eventually Eggsy takes a break, and joins Merlin on the boulder that is usually Harry’s.  
“Y’ won’t be able to see him from here,” Eggsy points out softly.  
“Aye. I know. I was hoping that if he did return, Harry would come get us. Or send someone.”  
“Y’ can head back if y’ want. I’m good with workin’ on my own,” Eggsy offers.  
Merlin hesitates. It’s obvious that he’s warring with himself. He takes his job as Eggsy’s tutor seriously, but with the worry about his friend Eggsy can forgive him for being absent and wanting to leave. Finally, Merlin stands.  
“Thank ye lad. I think I will take ye up on that,” he says, and briefly squeezes Eggsy’s shoulder.  
Eggsy is left alone to practice his magic for the first time ever. It feels almost unnatural somehow. His magic has always been monitored. He shakes off the itch between his shoulder blades that is trying to tell him he’s doing something wrong, and gets back to work.  
He tries new things with what Merlin has told him to learn. He works on his wall of fire for several minutes, building it bigger and stronger. He works on keeping it off the grass like Merlin told him to, and mostly succeeds. Then he pushes against his wall, advancing it across the field towards the lake. It fizzles out a few times before he gets it right. Then something clicks and he sends it shooting across without a problem. It’s the first spell he’s learned on his own.  
He takes this revelation, and uses it as inspiration. He brings up another tongue of fire, and tries to feed it into his whirlwind. The wind is stronger than the flames and it blows out. So Eggsy tries again, bigger flame, and smaller wind. It takes him most of the afternoon to get it right. When he gets it right, he whoops for joy.  
Someone chooses that moment to clear their throat, and Eggsy pivots on his heel, fire coming into a ball on his palm unconsciously. He sighs in relief when he spots Fiske.  
“Jesus mate! Coulda burned you. What’re y’ doin’ here?” Eggsy demands.  
“Your leader, the Lord Hart, seems displeased with me. I thought it best to avoid him,” Fiske explains.  
“So y’ thought y’d come here?” Eggsy complains. As much as he enjoys Fiske, he was enjoying being alone with his magic more. Now that he’s here, Eggsy is going to have to put up with an observer. It rankles him slightly.  
“Yes.” Fiske answers, “Should I not have?”  
“Nah,” Eggsy sighs, “It’s fine. Just… sit away from me yeah? Don’t want y’ getting hurt.”  
Fiske bows his head in agreement, and sits on Harry’s boulder. For one breath wrenching second, Eggsy wants to yell at him to get off. It’s all wrong him sitting there, and he needs to find some place else to sit. Then Eggsy gets control of himself.  
No point in losing the concentration he’s built up.  
He takes a chance on using lightning again. After he struggled the first time, Merlin had directed their attention elsewhere. Eggsy doesn’t want to give up on it though. Not when it’s useful.  
He can feel the way it drains his reserves. Just getting a few sparks it feels like pulling a boot free of mud. It drags, pulls, sucks, everything you don’t want magic to do. But just like pulling on a boot, the magic eventually comes free with an almighty pull. Lightning arcs off of Eggsy’s hand and sets his hair on end.  
He grins triumphantly and does it again. Soon he’s getting huge arcs that reach the tops of the trees and come down into the middle of the lake. It’s fantastic. He works his way through it like he did with the fire. He teaches himself control by making balls, learns maintaining it by creating walls. He’s so focused on his triumphs, he forgets Fiske is even there.  
He can feel himself tiring it out. There’s a tingle across his cheeks, and his eyes are blurry, and he decides to call it a day. He needs to keep his energy up. He isn’t sure when he will be needed, but he will. He intends to be fully charged when that happens.  
He sits down heavily on the grass to catch his breath. His eyes drift close, and he tilts his face towards the sun. It always makes him feel better to absorb some of the light after he’s been working this hard. He’s practically dozing off when he hears the rustle of fabric.  
When he opens his eyes, Fiske is kneeling in front of him. His head is bowed like he’s speaking to a king. Eggsy’s face screws up in confusion.  
“Whatcha doin’?” he asks hesitantly.  
“I want to swear my allegiance to you,” Fiske announces, tone deep and serious.  
“What the fuck?”  
“You are a god in your own right. I plan to serve you,” Fiske explains, and Eggsy scrambles to his feet.  
“No. No no no. Mate listen--” Eggsy starts but is cut off by yet someone else announcing their arrival by clearing their throat.  
Eggsy looks for the sources of the noise, and tries not wince when he sees Harry.  
His face is as stormy as it was when he first saw them together in the morning. His hands are balled into fists near his hips.  
“Harry,” Eggsy starts to explain, but can’t think of anything to say. What is there to explain? He was doing what he was supposed to, it isn’t his fault Fiske stayed. It also doesn’t make sense for Harry to be upset in the first place. He’s saved from having to think of something when Harry speaks.  
“James has returned. We ride out tonight,” he announces. “So when you are quite finished, I suggest you pack again.”  
He starts to walk away so Eggsy jogs to catch up with him, leaving Fiske still kneeling in the middle of the field. Harry refuses to look at Eggsy when he catches up. Eggsy scowls, and nudges Harry roughly.  
“Listen. Just cause y’re worried, don’t mean y’ can storm about acting like a dick,” Eggsy hisses.   
It does seems to reach Harry, at least a little, because he relaxes his tense shoulders. “I apologize. There is just something about him…”  
Eggsy ignores that comment and walks home with Harry.  
The camp is a frenzy when they return. Apparently James had returned with the entirety of the eastern plains. The number of people Eggsy has grown accustomed to has tripled. The only way to tell who is who, is by who is packing. Eggsy returns to his tent to begin packing himself.  
After a rushed dinner, everyone moves off. Some push carts, others ride in one pulled by goats or donkeys. A few lucky ones, such as Merlin and Harry, ride horses. Eggsy is among the lucky ones, and he rides on Harry’s left. Off into the unknown.


	7. Chapter 7

Eggsy learns quickly, that riding is more exhausting than magic. He can’t figure out how to relax like everyone else. Just when he thinks he’s settled, the horse takes a step that bumps him, and he’s forced to adjust. His back is screaming at him by the time they first make camp.  
He collapses face first into the grass where Harry is setting up his tent for the evening, with a pitiful whine. Harry chuckles and pats Eggsy’s head.  
“There there. It isn’t that bad,” he teases.  
“Fuck you,” Eggsy grunts, “I hate horses.”  
“You know if you don’t do your share to setup, technically you aren’t allowed dinner tonight,” Harry says mildly.  
“Don’t care. I’ll starve right here, right now,” Eggsy announces, “I ain't moving.”  
Harry’s hands land on him again out this time it´s to prod at his back. Eggsy whimpers softly when Harry's fingers press into a particularly tight knot of muscle. Satisfied, Harry stands again.  
“I suppose you can rest until dinner. No point in straining you more. You can ride in one of the carts tomorrow,” he announces.  
“Doesn't that mean I’m not going to ride with you?” Eggsy asks.  
“Yes?” Harry answers, clearly confused.  
“Nevermind. I can get up,” Eggsy mumbles, and shoves himself onto his knees with a small groan.  
“What are you doing?” Harry demands, settling a hand between Eggsy’s shoulder blades to deter him from getting to his feet.  
“Cause I want to ride with you.” Eggsy answers. “I can’t do that if I’m stuck in the cart.”  
“It isn’t that important that you ride with me,” Harry reassures.  
Eggsy gives up and flops back down to the soft grass. He lets out a tired sigh, and closes his eyes. A muscle twinges in his thighs and he’s too tired to even let out a pained squeak.  
“I thought you rode when we moved locations.” Harry questions.  
“Nah,” Eggsy sighs, “I walked both times.”  
Harry falls silent as he continues to pitch his tent. It lets Eggsy fall dead to the world. The last rays of sunshine fall on his back, and warms his aching muscles pleasantly. He ignores the rest of the world.  
Eventually, Harry nudges Eggsy’s shoulder to announce dinner. Eggsy shifts back into a sitting position, and takes the offered bowl. If he thinks about it, his muscles feel a little better. Like he’d managed to heal them when he’d rested. He thought Merlin was spouting nonsense when he talked about meditation. Maybe he actually has a point.  
He pops a slice of meat into his mouth, and almost spits it out in surprise.  
“What’s wrong?” Harry asks, brow creased in concern.  
“Nothing,” Eggsy assures him quickly, “Just wasn’t expecting it to be so spicy. Which group made it?”  
“Crimson Swords. Apparently James had time to nip down to our southern tribes as well.”  
Eggsy munches on another piece of meat. Now that he’s expecting the spice, it’s a pleasant burn at the back of his throat instead of an overwhelming rush in his nose. Eating makes him feel better too. So when he’s finished eating, he stands, and looks for his horse. He needs to set up his tent before it gets any later.   
Harry looks up from his own bowl of food when Eggsy moves.  
“Where are you going?”  
“Was gonna set up my tent or maybe go bunk in Roxy’s. Don’t fancy sleeping without one, prone to nasty bug bites,” Eggsy jokes.  
“Stay in my tent,” Harry says quickly. “At least for tonight.”  
“Are you sure mate?”  
“Of course. You are clearly too tired to set your own up, at least tonight, and mine is big enough for three. Stay with me,” Harry offers.  
“Alright. As long as you’re sure,” Eggsy checks again.  
“I am. Now sit.”  
Eggsy returns to the ground, immensely grateful that he doesn’t have to deal with the hassle of a tent. He has a few more bowls of the meat, then collapses on his back. The stars sparkle over head and despite riding into a war zone, he feels perfectly at peace.  
What happened in the field the day before wells up in his brain, and something Fiske says comes back to him. The words ‘a god in your own right,’ rattle around his head, until he finally gives in.  
“Harry?”  
“Yes Eggsy?” Harry murmurs absently.  
“How come Fiske thinks I’m a god?”  
“What?” Harry asks sharply, and Eggsy grimaces when he’s suddenly on the receiving end of Harry’s piercing gaze.  
“Yesterday, when you showed up and Fiske was kneelin’? He said somethin’ ‘bout me bein’ a god. I don’t think he was jokin’ either. Was dead serious about it, said he wanted to serve a deity or some shit,” Eggsy explains, “I don’t know. Sounds silly. Was just wonderin’ why he said it.”  
Harry frowns slightly, obviously put out by something, “I know his people believe magic is granted by the gods. If he saw what Merlin and I see, it’s easy to understand why he would think you are the one who gifts the magic.”  
“What you and Merlin see huh?” Eggsy asks with a small smirk.  
“Don’t fish for compliments,” Harry huffs.  
“Wow. I didn’t know sticks could go that far up your ass,” Eggsy jokes.  
“Oh do shut up,” Harry snarks, but his smile gives him away as not being serious, “All three of us know that your magic will far surpass anything Merlin can train you on. Don't be a shit about it.”  
Eggsy laughs, and props himself on his elbows. He likes this relaxed Harry. He’s more approachable somehow, less the uptight leader he usually is. It’s nice to be able to sass without worrying he will overstep. Traveling and starlight do Harry well. He’s smiling more than ever, and those delightful crinkles near his eyes are emphasized in the half light. He’s beautiful.   
That thought takes Eggsy by surprise and he flops back on the grass to avoid Harry’s eyes. He knows the second they make eye contact, Harry will be able to tell something is wrong. Eggsy isn’t ready to admit that particular thought aloud yet, and he doesn’t think he can come up with a lie on the spot.  
“I’m gonna go get my bedroll. Don’t want Gwaine to be asleep by the time I go to pick it up,” he announces as an excuse, and stands up. He decides to deal with his inner monologue tomorrow.  
Harry’s tent is nice. Eggsy knew it would be because no one would let their leader sleep in something with holes or flimsy fabric. He didn't expect it to be as nice as it is though. Harry wasn't joking when he said it was big enough for three. Eggsy thinks it could probably fit four comfortably, maybe even five if the people didn't mind being a bit squished. It's bigger than Eggsy’s bedroom back on the Fringe.   
The fabric is a heavy canvas, and is the first tent Eggsy has seen that isn't patchwork. It keeps the evening winds at bay, but doesn't sacrifice a cool temperature on the warm night. Eggsy thinks it's the nicest home he's ever been in.   
He lays out his bedroll off to one side, leaving as much tent for Harry as possible. He's sure Harry doesn't mind him taking up space, but he doesn't want to fuck with Harry’s routine. It's more comfortable for them both if Eggsy sticks to one section.   
Harry walks in, and rolls his eyes when he sees where Eggsy has set up. He drops his roll to the ground towards the center, just as Eggsy suspected.   
“You know, if you stay there, you’re more likely to wake up near a puddle of piss when someone gets too drunk,” Harry teases, and Eggsy snorts.  
“They won’t dare piss near y’r tent, Harry.”  
“You would be surprised. Men seem to lose their way quite easily when drunk,” Harry says. “Just heed my advice and move from the edge.”  
“Fine fine,” Eggsy relents, and picks up his roll. He drops it a few feet away from Harry’s and that seems to please Harry enough.   
They both settle down for the night. Being so close together doesn’t seem to bother Harry in the slightest. He says a polite goodnight to Eggsy, and rolls over, asleep in seconds. Eggsy however, stays awake longer than he probably should considering how knock out tired he is. He can’t shake the sensation of being so close to Harry.  
Eggsy doesn’t have to listen hard to hear Harry’s breathing in the cool tent. He finds himself focusing on it and counting each breath. He’s creeping even himself out. If anyone back on The Fringe knew what he was doing, he’d be run out. Even though Eggsy isn’t quite sure what he’s doing himself.   
Eventually, he sighs and rolls over. There’s no point in being awake and picking at his emotions. He’s in for another long ride tomorrow, and he fully intends to see if he can cast a spell to make it not so painful.  
Harry wakes him the next morning on his way out of the tent. Eggsy rolls onto his back, and tries to rub the sleep from his eyes. He’s still groggy when Harry tells him breakfast is waiting in the meeting tent. It takes a few minutes before he can bring himself to stagger out.  
His muscles all ache but he’s pretty sure they would hurt much more if he hadn’t accidentally meditated the night before. He stumbles into the meeting tent, and collapses next to Roxy. She seems equally as out of it as he is. She wordlessly passes him some jerky and bread. They sit in silence, and scowl every time James gets too loud. It comforts Eggsy to know that someone else hates mornings just as much as him.  
The food helps perk them up, and after a while they join the others sitting in a big group. They end up squished between Percival and Harry. Harry shuffles over to give them room.  
“What’s happenin’ over here then?” Eggsy asks.  
“Discussing what route we’re taking,” Harry answers. “Gwaine suggested cutting through villages. Bors told him he just wanted to see some of the girls. Then Merlin brought up a time Bors was almost castrated by a jealous husband up north, and now you’re mostly up to date.”  
“Bors was almost castrated?” Eggsy asks incredulously “How’d that happen?”  
“We decided to stay near a village up north. Bors flirted a little too heavily with a barmaid, and her husband heard. He chased Bors all the way back to his tent before he let it go. Merlin had to separate the two of them.”  
“Has anyone told y’ that y’ are all nuts?”  
Harry grins, “Merlin tells us all the time. Yet he stays so I would say he’s more loony than us.”  
Merlin looks across at Harry sharply from the other side of the table.  
“I heard that,” he snaps and Harry waves away his complaint.  
“I think it’s a good idea t’ avoid villages though,” Eggsy contributes, “I mean, the fewer people who see us the better yeah? Means Valentine will have a harder time tracking us.”  
“That is an excellent point. Although Percival did point out it would exhaust our supplies less,” Merlin responds.  
The table falls silent as everyone considers which is worse. The risk of being spied on, or not having enough supplies. Harry makes the final decision  
“We will send in small groups. We can camp on the outskirts and send a few people in to get supplies, and we solve the issues with suspicion,” Harry suggests and it draws a roar of agreement.  
Eggsy is shocked that he’s even allowed to contribute. He’s still so new that it seems like no one should take him seriously. But whenever he suggests something, everyone genuinely listens. He didn’t even receive that kind of consideration in his own home.  
He helps Harry pack up the tent before they leave. It’s only fair since Eggsy slept there the night before. He doesn’t mind either, it gives him an opportunity to feel how his muscles are working. They ache just as badly as when he woke up, and he has no idea how he’s going to ride a horse again.  
He saddles up the horse from the day before, ignoring the look Harry is sending him. He refuses to ride in the wagon with Charlie though. He can’t think of anything worse than having to spend the day with the prick. He’d inevitably manage to make remarks about Eggsy’s inability to ride horse. Despite the fact that, while Charlie gets to ride the cart horse and be in charge of supplies, he doesn’t get to ride a proper horse.  
As they ride, Eggsy focuses on shoving the pain from his back. By the time the sun reaches it’s peak he’s mostly succeeded, and he spurs his horse forward so he can ride next to Harry and Merlin.  
“So what’s the nearest town?” he asks.  
“Kara’s Vale,” Merlin responds.  
“I think I’ve heard of it,” Eggsy says. “It’s got a waterfall in the middle yeah? That’s what my Da told me.”  
“There is. It’s beautiful. It creates this fine mist over the whole town,” Harry describes.  
“You’ve been there before?”  
“We both have.” Harry explains, and gestures between himself and Merlin, “It’s where we met actually.”  
“Really? How did that happen?” Eggsy prys.  
“It really isn’t all that interesting,” Harry deflects.  
“Please?” Eggsy teases.  
“Oh go on,” Merlin grumbles, “ye know the lad won’t stop asking until ye answer. He’s persistent.”  
“Please Harry?” Eggsy pleads again, batting his eyelashes for good measure.  
Harry sighs, and tilts his head up to the sky, debating whether the story is really worth telling, and trying to bring his annoyance under control at the same time. Finally he lowers his head, and looks over at Eggsy.  
“The previous leader decided we should stop in Kara’s Vale. We hadn’t had a proper hunt in weeks, and apparently Kara’s Vale was friendly to the tribes. We brought fine worked goods they were unable to make themselves, and they gave us basic supplies. I was one of the lucky few who wasn’t on any type of duty that evening, so I was able to go into the town proper. Of course I decided the pub was an excellent first stop, but I was a bit too rambunctious in my youth. I ended up in a brawl. I was winning when Merlin separated us all. Then dragged me to the waterfall, and tossed me in the lake to sober me up.”  
“What he means,” Merlin interjects, “Is that he was so piss poor drunk that he challenged a young woman to an arm wrestling contest. Then when she won, he accidentally knocked a tankard over the richest lad in town.”  
“Yes well,” Harry says, “Don’t get me started on embarrassing. You had hair back then if you remember.”  
“No way!” Eggsy cries “Merlin wif hair? What’d that look like?”  
“It was blonde and curly,” Harry describes gleefully. “He looked like a deranged duckling!”  
Eggsy bursts into laughter, and his horse nearly bucks him in surprise. Eggsy runs a hand over her neck to soothe her but he doesn’t stop grinning. The image of intimidating hawk-like Merlin with fluffy curly blonde hair is still branded into his mind’s eye. It has him in stitches.  
“Fuck. Wish I coulda see that,” he murmurs.  
“It was quite the sight,” Merlin agrees, “Almost as good as the look on Chester’s face when I brought Harry back to the camp soaked to the skin. He was so shocked he offered me a position on the spot.”  
Eggsy tries to imagine it; young Harry dripping on some lord’s boots while young Merlin holds him by the scruff of his neck. It’s a hilarious image. He has a feeling that he would have been good friends with Harry as a young man; before leadership brought that heavy cast to his brow. Merlin and the others always made him seem so carefree and wild. Eggsy can get behind that kind of spirit. They ride in silence for a long while after that, each lost in thought.  
“How much longer before we reach Valentine do y’ reckon?” Eggsy asks.  
“I would say roughly a week,” Harry answers. “They’re struggling to cross the lakes. Going around can take up to two weeks, and that is time they do not want to waste.”  
“Not to be a doubter but, if they can’t get across how are we gonna do it?”  
“That is where we come in,” Merlin explains. “We’re going to freeze the lake furthest from them then circle back around.”  
“I ain’t ever froze somethin’ that big,” Eggsy points out, “Just made shards.”  
“I know lad. I believe the two of us working together we will be able to accomplish it.”  
“If y’re certain then I believe y’,” Eggsy relents. “Can we work on it a bit tonight?”  
“Of course.”   
Eggsy grins at him in thanks. He settles back into riding, focusing on the gentle up and down. It’s better the second time, having gotten used to the sensation. His muscles aren’t protesting as much. Continually washing away the cramps with magic comes almost naturally, and that makes it easier to ride properly.  
They ride hard until evening. They only pause for an hour or so around mid day to give the horses a rest, and to eat some lunch. It’s worth it though for how much ground they cover. They stop well into the night, when not even the moon is quite large enough to light their path.  
Everyone is exhausted. That’s clear in the lack of merriment. No one is in the mood to get drunk and party all night. Probably because more than half of them had to ride hungover during the day. Less tents go up that night as well. People either share, or else take their chances in the open air under the stars.   
Eggsy is just as worn out, but he still seeks Merlin out after eating dinner. He finds him slumped on the edge of a cart with a bedroll on his lap, having run out of momentum.  
“Are we still going to practice with ice?” Eggsy asks.  
Merlin lets out a pained groan and shakes his head, “Fuck no. If I had known Harry would be driving to push us this late, I would never have agreed. Get some rest lad.”  
“Are y’ sure Merlin? I don’t want t’ get t’ the lakes and not be able to freeze it.”  
“I’m very sure. I am going to collapse shortly if ye do nae go away. Too tired.”  
Eggsy grins and pats Merlin on the shoulder. He knows exactly how Merlin feels. He’s practically falling asleep on his feet.  
“I’m outta here then. I think Roxy got a mate to sent up her tent.”  
“Yes go. Too much youthful energy. Away with ye.”  
Eggsy grins and wanders away towards he last saw Roxy setting up. He never actually asked if he could tent with her, but he’s sure she won’t mind. He doesn’t do anything weird in his sleep, and she’s a good pal.  
He nods to a few men from the other tribes as he goes. He carefully avoid Fiske when he catches a glimpse of him. Ever since that afternoon in the clearing, Fiske has been acting strange. Always bowing low when he sees Eggsy, and being overly polite.  
He arrives at Roxy’s tent and before he can even ask, she gestures for him to get inside.  
“Go on. I don’t mind,” she says easily, and Eggsy kisses her cheek.  
“Y’ are a saint. Swear to the gods Rox,” he says gratefully.  
“I am,” Roxy agrees, and follows him in. They’re asleep in seconds.


	8. Chapter 8

There’s a palpable change in the air a few days later. There’s just something off about the land they’re riding through that Eggsy can’t quite place. Everything seems colder somehow, a little darker. The sun is shining as brightly as ever but Eggsy feels the chill in his bones.   
He glances around to see if anyone else has noticed but he’s the only one who seems unsettled. Not even Merlin is shaken, there’s even a fine sheen of sweat on his arms and neck. Something on his face must show his discomfort, because Harry stares at him in concern.  
“Eggsy? Is everything alright?” he asks.  
“I… yeah?” Eggsy answers hesitantly, “It feel cold to you?”  
“No,” Harry responds and his brow creases. “It’s blazing.”  
Eggsy nods slowly, and blinks a few times. He’s freezing, and exhausted. He’s not sure why. It’s sunny and Harry let them sleep in, so he should be feeling fine. Instead he feels like he’s wading through mud.   
Harry calls for a halt and Eggsy almost misses it. His horse is the one to come to a stop, apparently recognizing the command Harry issued. Eggsy blinks a few times to bring the world back into focus. Harry’s face comes swimming back into view.  
“I’m okay,” he insists, “Just kinda cold.”  
Harry shakes his head and holds his hands out to Eggsy expectantly. Eggsy takes Harry’s offered hands, and dismounts. Once he’s settled safely, sitting on the ground, Harry turns sharply to one of the men riding with them.  
“Go find Viron,” he snaps.  
Gwaine rides off down the line. His horse returns without him, this time with wizened old Viron perched on her back.  
Viron pokes and prods Eggsy, whispering spells the entire time. Really, Eggsy doesn’t feel that awful. He’s been sick before. Just a few years ago he came down with a nasty flu and was out of commission for days. This feels nothing like that.   
“There doesn’t seem to be anything wrong Harry,” Viron says at last.  
“Then why does he look like he just swallowed too much of your sleeping draft, then downed one of Merlin’s experiments to even it out?” Harry asks, voice tight.  
“It ain’t that bad,” Eggsy insists. “I just feel cold. I’m fine.”  
Harry scrutinizes him, looking for a sign of deception. Eggsy raises his eyebrows defiantly, and Harry turns to Merlin.  
“Any ideas?”  
“Why would ye think I know anything?” Merlin asks, flummoxed.  
“Well if it isn’t physical…” Harry trails off, strongly implying that some magic shenanigan is happening.  
Merlin sighs and dismounts as well. He comes to join the group. Eggsy groans and runs a hand through his hair.  
“I’ll be okay. Can I just get my coat or a cloak or something?”  
“Eggsy, ye look like shit. We’re trying to figure out why,” Merlin growls.  
“Okay. Well what d’ya need to know? I don’t wanna hold us up,” Eggsy insists.  
“Does it feel like there’s something squeezing ye?”  
“Nah. Feel like I’m full of spring sludge.”  
“So cold and heavy?”  
“That’s what I’ve been trying to say,” Eggsy snaps.  
Merlin goes quiet, contemplating the options. Eggsy can practically see the ideas flicking behind his eyes. Harry is staring at Merlin like he will have all the answers. Everyone is tense.  
“How far are we from Valentine’s army are we?” he asks finally.  
“A week?” Harry estimates.  
“That’s what this is,” Merlin says. “The magic is dragging Eggsy down. I suspect It will affect us all in a few days time.”  
“What do we do then?” Harry demands.  
“We get our winter things out and prepare to freeze our bollocks off,” Merlin announces.  
Harry strides off dramatically. His legs are so long they make everything he’s doing look dramatic. The man could be hobbling along on blisters, and Eggsy has feeling it would look far more dramatic than it actually was.   
“Where the fuck is he going now?” Eggsy whines, “I just want to keep moving.”  
“I suspect getting you a cloak,” Viron says dryly.  
Sure enough Harry returns with a fur lined cloak. He drapes it around Eggsy’s shoulders, and fastens it closed with swift long fingers. He’s oddly grateful for that gesture, and the tenderness it holds. The cloak is ridiculously soft and it actually does warm him somewhat.   
“How come y’ keep puttin’ me in fur?” Eggsy asks.  
“It suits you,” Harry states, and stands up again. “I suppose we should begin moving again.”  
Eggsy stands up as well, and makes his way back to his horse. Now that he’s warm he doesn’t feel quite as heavy and tired. He mounts up, and waits for everyone else to do the same. They still have miles to ride before they can stop.  
By nightfall Merlin has started feeling the drag as well. He wraps himself in a cloak and sits close to Eggsy in front of the fire.  
“Soon enough the ground will begin to spoil,” he murmurs.  
“Think we should find somewhere t’ get water before we get there just in case Kara’s Vale has gone sour?” Eggsy asks.  
“Aye. I’ll let Harry know,” Merlin decides and goes to find him.  
Eggsy shivers throughout dinner. No matter how close he sits to the fire, he can’t get warm. He wonders if Valentine feels like this all the time or if he’s developed a tolerance to it.  
On his walk to his tent, he can tell his reaction has thrown everyone off. Except for the day where they rode through the night, there’s been merriment among the men. Now though, the usual smiles and bawdy, and obviously embellished, stories are gone and replaced with grim faces. Some even look at him with suspicion.   
Someone was kind enough to drop extra blankets and some furs in his tent. Eggsy piles every single one of them on his pallet before crawling in. It isn’t enough. The temperature outside has dropped drastically with no sun to warm the air, and it mixes with the cold from the magic. The cold seeps in through even the heaviest fabric.   
He gives up on sleeping for the time being. He knows there are more furs in the carts. He works his way through the tents, trying to be quiet so as not to wake anyone already asleep.  
He sighs in relief when he reaches the carts. The prospect of being warm is enough to make him a little weak in the knees. He fishes out a fur from the various bundles, and turns to return to his tent.  
He sucks in a sharp breath when he runs into someone right behind him. He backs off, and groans when he sees Harry.  
“Fuck mate. Gonna make me keel over,” he hisses.  
“I apologize,” Harry says quickly. “I think even I might be feeling the chill. I came for extra furs.”  
“Same,” Eggsy announces and gestures with the hand holding a fur.  
“I see. Perhaps we should share then,” Harry offers.  
Eggsy’s heart leaps into his throat. “What?”  
“We should leave as many furs as we can for others in case they get cold. Sharing would keep us both warm.”  
“Alright. Guess I’ll go get my things. Y’ have more room in your tent,” Eggsy says stiffly. He’s trying to remain as calm as possible but the idea of sharing furs with Harry makes him break into a nervous sweat.  
He keeps his pace as slow and measured as possible on the walk back to his tent, trying to match Harry’s speed. The last thing he wants is Harry to think he’s eager or that he’s reluctant. Either could make the situation uncomfortable. Eggsy wants this whole situation to be the least awkward he can get it.  
“How far out from Kara’s Vale are we do y’ think?” Eggsy questions.  
“We should reach it by nightfall tomorrow,” Harry answers. “Would you like to go in?”  
“Could I? I mean, I wouldn’t want to put anyone out by not bein’ here.”   
“I think it should be fine. I can double check with Merlin when we ride out tomorrow.”  
“That would be aces,” Eggsy says with a huge grin.  
They round another tent, and come across Eggsy’s. He ducks inside, and gathers his pallet, and all the furs he has. Even Harry’s pallet is designed to fit one person only. There’s no way two grown men will fit on it.  
Eggsy backs out of his tent with his bundle, and turns to face Harry. They start the walk to Harry’s tent in silence.   
Ever since the tribes gathered together, it’s been nearly impossible to figure out where people are staying. By the time they stop at the end of the day, most just set up their tents wherever they get dropped. The careful organization from when Eggsy first arrived has long since vanished. He doubts it will be coming back any time soon.  
He does his best to memorize the route from his tent to Harry’s so that he’s able to pack the next morning. The only light Eggsy has to see by is from the stars, but much like with the sun earlier, they seem dimmer. The lack of light makes it difficult to tell what tents they’re passing. They all turn a faint mauve, and Eggsy is confused by the blur. It’s frightening to think that shortly they’ll be waging a battle against the man with the power to make it this difficult to see. It’ hard to stay confident in the plan when there’s so much evidence that they could be wiped from existence with a thought.  
Harry holds the tent flap open and Eggsy ducks inside. He waits until Harry is inside as well before he even thinks about setting his stuff down. He wants to make sure they’re situated as comfortably as possible. If that means letting Harry pick his side then Eggsy is willing to do that.  
“Where should I lay it out?” he asks.  
“Either side. I don’t have a preference,” Harry answers.  
Eggsy separates his pallet from his blankets in a nervous rush. Then lays it out along the right side of Harry’s. He smooths out the furs one by one, and stacks them on his side. When he looks up Harry is doing the same.  
They shuffle awkwardly onto their pallets and toss the furs over each other one by one. When all is said and done Eggsy is grateful for the warmth. He scrunches down on his pallet until the furs are tucked against his jaw. His eyes fell shut at the warmth but when he opens them, Harry is staring at him.  
“What?” Eggsy grumbles.  
“Nothing,” Harry murmurs. “Just thinking about the furs.”  
Eggsy rolls his eyes, and frees his hand from beneath the covers. With a flick of his wrist the lanterns sputter out, leaving them in darkness. He switches to his other side to be more comfortable.  
He thought extinguishing the light would make the situation less tense but it has the opposite effect. Without light Eggsy is more aware of everything. The way Harry’s hand is curled in a loose fist just a few inches from Eggsy’s neck. His warm steady breathing that tickles the hair on the back of Eggsy’s head.   
Eggsy forces himself to close his eyes and think of anything else.The exhaustion from the day’s ride catches up to him eventually, and not even Harry’s knee brushing his calf is enough to keep him awake. He crashes hard, and doesn’t stir for the entire night.  
He’s woken in the morning by a hand running through his hair. Before he can wake properly though, the hand is gone and the person with it. He sits up groggily, and wraps the cloak around his shoulders.  
The tense mood from the night before has alleviated slightly. The camp is abuzz with excitement about Kara’s Vale. Eggsy has a feeling that their plan to use Kara’s Vale to restock while keeping hidden is going to be blown out the window.  
He locates Roxy by one of the fires, and sits down with a massive sigh. She looks over at him and her nose wrinkles.  
“You’re making me sweaty just looking at you,” she announces.  
“Mate, it feels like I swallowed a chunk of ice,” Eggsy shoots back.  
“Still. Fur in midsummer?” she says skeptically.  
Eggsy levitates a piece of sausage off her plate and pelts her with it. Roxy gasps and punches his shoulder.  
“Asshole!” she exclaims.  
“Dick,” Eggsy replies.  
They grin at each other, and Roxy passes him a fresh plate of food and Eggsy wolfs it down. There is something about the ice in his gut that makes him as hungry as the time spent under Dean’s roof.  
“Think you’re gonna be one of the ones goin’ into Kara’s Vale tonight?” Eggsy asks between bites.  
“No,” Roxy says simply.  
“Why’s that?”  
“I don’t think Kara’s Vale allows me in. There was never an official banishing but…” she trails off.  
“You’re banished from Kara’s Vale?” Eggsy asks incredulously.  
“No. But I quite enjoyed the look on your face when I said it,” she teases.  
“Wow. Real funny Rox,” Eggsy snarks and grins at her.  
“I have to see if Harry will give me permission to go. Technically I am still a warrior in training. Generally we aren’t allowed down time.”  
“Well I hope you can go. I think I’ll be going. It would be nice to have a friend with me.”  
“I'll try,” Roxy promises, “I haven't actually gotten to hang out with you when we aren't exhausted from training.”  
They finish breakfast and go their separate ways. Eggsy switches to a warmer shirt, reties his cloak, and sets out to tear down his tent for the day. He gets a few odd looks from people due to his clothes but he ignores them. He can't help that he's freezing his ass off.   
He pauses on his walk back to collect his things from Harry’s tent. Then he folds everything neatly into his pack, and heads for the horses. It's much easier to find his way through the camp by sunlight.   
He meets Harry and Merlin at the head of the line. Harry has added a coat to his outfit and so has Merlin. It relieves Eggsy slightly to know that even others are beginning to be affected by the magic.   
“Y’ guys too huh?” He asks  
“I'm afraid so,” Harry agrees, “Did you sleep well last night?”  
“Yeah. Didn't kick y’ or nothin’ did I?” Eggsy asks, and his heart does an odd stutter stop when he remembers how warm it was that close to Harry.   
“No. You were a lovely bed partner,” Harry says with a warm grin, then he urges his horse forward to start the ride to Kara’s Vale.   
Everyone takes off after Harry, and Eggsy falls in alongside Merlin. He doesn't seem inclined to chat, and it leaves Eggsy to deal with his own thoughts. He's been shoving away any and all thoughts concerning Harry since the first time they met.   
Now though, when everyone’s caught in their own thoughts and every second brings them closer to battle, he has nothing to distract himself. Especially when Harry looks ridiculously regal riding on a horse, jaw set in determination. He's beautiful. It causes a roaring in Eggsy’s ears.   
He's not sure what a crush feels like. There was no one in The Fringe worth looking at; not when he was desperately trying to take care of Daisy. He thinks this might be it though. The way his heart clenches when Harry pays attention to him, or how his hands tingle when they brush Harry’s at dinner.   
Eggsy fights back the panic at that realization. He's an adult, he can handle his own emotions. He isn't about to get himself kicked out because he came on to their leader.   
He knows he has no chance that Harry feels the same. He's obviously in love with Merlin. He doesn't joke as freely with anyone else. Eggsy has no chance.   
They reach the outskirts of Kara’s Vale by night fall. Everyone stops to make camp, and the leaders each announce who is allowed to go in for supplies. Subtlety is key. They want to downplay their numbers when at all possible. The last thing they need is for a potential scout to report back to Valentine.  
Among those chosen from the Kingsmen are Roxy and Eggsy. Eggsy searches for her once everyone is dismissed, and comes across her digging a coin purse from her things in her tent. He waits in the entrance to her tent until she’s finished, then they stroll off together towards the center of Kara’s Vale.  
“Y’ ever been before?” Eggsy asks curiously.  
“Never actually,” Roxy responds, “I’ve heard stories about it since I was little. Uncle James used to tell me that if you walked next to the basin late at night, a creature would appear and give you something you sorely needed.”  
“A creature?” Eggsy asks.  
“Yes. No one is quite sure what shape it takes but apparently it grew irritated of the story of a faerie doing this, and insisted it be referred to by something else.”  
“Who knew those guy was so finicky,” Eggsy says with a laugh.  
“People have been cast into different realms for less,” Roxy warns sagely but she’s grinning too.  
The waterfall in the center of the town is as magnificent as everyone described. It roars over the edge of the cliff and crashes down into the basin below. A fine layer of mist covers the town square formed by the tiny droplets tossed into the air by the collision.  
Roxy makes a beeline for the first pub that she spots and Eggsy trails after her. He’s been in a pub exactly once. When he was young, he rode with his Da into the nearest big town. They stopped for dinner in one. Eggsy can vaguely remember the beaten wood of the bar.  
This pub is nothing like the one Eggsy remembers. Everything is polished so well he can see his face reflected back.The ale is delicious and the atmosphere reminds Eggsy of the fires in camp, before they marched off into certain death.  
Roxy disappears after an hour with a young woman with masses of dark curly hair. Without anyone there to keep him company, Eggsy wanders away from the bar towards the basin. HIs head is fuzzy from alcohol, and it makes the moon look wiggly.  
He seats himself on the bank and his feet dangle freely above the water. The roaring of the waterfall lulls him into a daze. He doesn’t stir for a long time.  
He’s just thinking of returning to camp, when something catches his attention. The flutter of a piece of fabric in his peripheral vision, or the pop of a twig being stepped on. Eggsy clambers to his feet and glances around. A little girl stands a few feet away from him, just staring. Her white cloak flutters in the wind coming off the waterfall.  
“Are y’ lost?” Eggsy asks her.  
“No,” she answers simply.  
“Do y’ need help?”  
“No.”  
“What are y’ doin’ out so late then?” Eggsy asks, and crouches down to her level.  
“I have something for you,” the little girl announces, and glides forward to where Eggsy is resting, “Hold out your hand.”  
For some inexplicable reason, Eggsy holds his hand out to her. She presses something cold into his palm, then uses her tiny fingers to wrap Eggsy’s larger ones around the object.  
“What is it?” he asks her softly.  
“You’ll know how to use it when the time comes,” the little girl says mysteriously, and presses a kiss to his cheek. Eggsy’s eyes flutter close at the rush of magic that rushes through him, and when he opens them again, the little girl is gone.  
He unclenches his hand, and stares down at the object in his palm. It’s a ring. A thick band of silver with a small band of gold running around the center. There are runes carved into the silver all the way around, and it fits perfectly on his right thumb.He feels some of the ice clinging to his veins thaw when the metal slides over his skin.


	9. Chapter 9

Eggsy wanders back to camp, completely unaware of his surroundings. He doesn’t even think to pause and go find Roxy. He’s too busy focusing on the ring. He keeps running a finger over it, as though he’s not convinced it’s real.  
He finds himself standing outside of Harry’s tent with no recollection of how he got there. Eggsy looks around himself in mild confusion. It feels much like when he was trying to drag himself awake from one of Viron’s potions. The little girl from the basin must have enchanted him.  
“Eggsy?”  
Eggsy turns at the sound of his name and sighs in relief when he sees Harry. His brow is crinkled in a frown, and his whiskey eyes are filled with concern. Eggsy smiles at him dopily, and finds himself swaying forward a little before he can stop himself. Harry braces his hands against Eggsy’s shoulders.  
“Is everything alright?” he prods.  
“Yeah,” Eggsy sighs, “A little girl gave me a ring.”  
“What?”  
Eggsy waves his hand drunkenly in front of Harry’s face, and Harry catches his wrist. Eggsy just bites back a whimper at the contact. Harry scrutinizes the ring, then ushers Eggsy into the tent.  
“I’m going to get Merlin to look at it,” Harry decides. “Stay put.”  
Eggsy settles on the floor of Harry’s tent, and grins when he sees that his things have already been brought. Harry wanted him to stay the night again.  
Eggsy feels like his head is on straight by the time Harry returns with Merlin. Whatever spell that the little girl cast is fading. He stands when they enter and automatically holds his hand out to Merlin for him to inspect the ring.  
“I feel okay now,” he assures them while Merlin is twisting the ring back and forth in the lamp light, “The spell is fading.”  
“Aye. I can feel it leaving,” Merlin agrees.  
Eggsy makes the flame inside the lamp flicker to test his own magic. If his brain was scrambled, then his magic could have been affected as well. He’s satisfied with the fact he can make the flame move without any effort.  
“Any idea what it is?” Harry asks.  
“Not exactly. I’ve never seen runes like this in my life. I think it’s old. Original mages old,” Merlin explains, “I would keep that close to ye Eggsy. It has power.”  
“A little girl gave it to me,” Eggsy repeats, “Well… I ain’t sure if she were actually a little girl. Might have been a god or some shit. But it looked like a little girl.”  
“There is nae much to be done tonight,” Merlin says, “What’s important is that ye are back safe.”  
“What about Rox? I was too pissed on ale to pay attention to where she went,” Eggsy questions.  
“She came back half an hour ago,” Harry assures him, “Everyone is accounted for.”  
Eggsy sighs in relief and starts unrolling his pack. He’s oddly drained despite the light day of riding, and he’s ready for bed.  
“I’m beat,” he announces.  
Merlin snorts and ruffles Eggsy’s hair, “I get the idea lad. We’re practising magic on horseback while we ride tomorrow.”  
Eggsy grins at him, then lays his pallet out alongside Harry’s. Despite the ring making the cold easier to bear, he’s still shivering in the cool night air. It will be nice to be near Harry with how warm he is.  
“Harry?”  
“Yes?” Harry asks absentmindedly, dimming the lamps.  
“How come y’ and Merlin don’t stay together?” Eggsy asks as he shakes out a fur.  
Harry pauses in what he’s doing. He turns to face Eggsy and he looks utterly bemused.  
“What on earth are you talking about?” Harry asks.  
“Nothing. It’s just… the two of y’ seem close is all. I thought maybe y’ were…” Eggsy trails off awkwardly.  
“You aren’t the first,” Harry admits, “Merlin and I care for each other quite a bit. We are, however, not attracted to each other.”  
“Oh. Sorry,” Eggsy apologizes and hides his smug grin behind his last fur.  
“Quite alright, my boy,” Harry murmurs and dims the last lamp, leaving one for Eggsy to extinguish once they are settled.  
Eggsy climbs under the furs and settles comfortably on his pallet. Without a word, Harry slides under the furs as well.  
“Thank y’ Harry,” Eggsy says.  
“For what?” Harry asks curiously, and rolls over to face Eggsy.  
“Givin’ me a life here,” Eggsy answers, “and for keepin’ me warm.”  
Harry smiles, and brushes his knuckles along Eggsy’s hairline affectionately.  
“It was no problem. Any of it,” he swears, “Now go to sleep. Merlin wasn’t joking about taking up your training again.”  
Both men roll over so that their backs are just brushing. Eggsy extinguishes the final lamp, and allows a grin to bloom in the safety of the dark. Harry might not feel the same about him, but Merlin not being in the equation removes the guilt. He falls asleep running his fingers over his ring.  


*  
“So what's the difference between using magic on a horse and using it standing?” Eggsy asks.  
“For one ye are on a live creature. If ye lose control of your magic even for a second, it could panic the horse. Then ye could end up being trampled. It can take twice the concentration. Ye have to worry about not falling off your horse, as well as focusing on directing your magic where it is meant to be. Too much focus on one or the other and it could be disastrous,” Merlin explains.  
“So if I'm not careful,” Eggsy summarizes, “I could get killed, or I could kill the wrong person.”  
“Aye,” Merlin says.  
“What are we starting with then?”  
“Light. It takes the least amount of your energy other than the fire ye are gifted with, and other than the minor healing magics ye performed it will panic Rona the least.”  
Eggsy shrugs. It sounds easy enough to him. He reaches for the magic inside of him, relieved to find it just under his skin, and unaffected by the enchantment from the night before. He didn't think anything had gone wrong but there had been low level worry.  
The light bursts forth from the air and twists into a floating ball. Rona whinnies in a panic, and rears back. Eggsy lets the spell vanish in favor of running his hand down Rona’s neck.  
“Easy love,” he coos.  
After a minute or so, she settles again, and falls back in line with Merlin’s horse. Eggsy looks over at Merlin with a small grimace.  
“Too fast?” he guesses.  
“Aye. Too fast,” Merlin agrees, “I know it's easy for ye to go quickly. Ye need to find the balance between fast and calm.”  
Eggsy nods and tries again. This time he builds the ball quickly and steadily instead of shoving it into existence. It bobs steadily in the air next to them. Rona doesn't seem to notice.  
“Very good Eggsy,” Merlin praises, “If ye approach all spells in such a way, ye will be able to do it all from horseback.”  
“Hell yeah,” Eggsy responds, just as Harry comes riding up from the back of the line.  
“How is everyone?” Merlin asks.  
“No one is ill or injured. All are accounted for,” Harry rattles off, “although it seems a few more have started feeling the drain. How are the two of you?”  
Eggsy considers it. There’s a distinct pressure against the back of his skull. It was easy enough to ignore when he was focused on working through the specifics of horseback magic. Now though, the pressure is making his entire head throb. The ice is creeping back in around the edges as well. He has a feeling that he'd be frozen through without the ring on his thumb.  
“Headache,” he admits finally.  
“Colder today,” Merlin announces, “ye might want to instruct people to begin finding partners for warmth.”  
Harry takes the suggestion under advisement, and turns to ride back to down the line to a proper messenger.  
Eggsy runs his left thumb over the ring, puzzling over it. He wonders why he was gifted it, and where it came from.  
Eggsy is deep in conversation with Merlin when he has to rein Rona to a sudden stop. Harry is at the front of the line, holding a hand up to indicate a halt. He turns in his saddle and gestures Merlin forward.  
A chill slides down Eggsy’s spine. Something is wrong. He leans as far up and forward as he can to try to get a look. Whatever it is Harry and Merlin are looking at is blocked from view by them and the two horses.  
Merlin gives Harry an obvious shrug, and rides back to the line. Harry remains where he is, staring ahead at the horizon. His shoulders straighten, and wheels his horse back around.  
“We ride forward,” he announces.  
The front of the line surges forward, and slowly but surely the entire thing gathers momentum. Eggsy turns to Merlin to ask what's happening but his mouth is pressed tightly together. As they ride passed the point where Merlin and Harry paused, Eggsy understands.  
There’s a distinct line in the grass. On one side the grass is a healthy green; thick and lush. On the other side the land is dead. Eggsy can't think of another way to describe it. The grass thins, and grows more brittle the further they ride. Eventually it disappears all together.  
All that's left behind is dirt but even that looks dead. Instead of soft brown of planting dirt, or the red-brown of mixed clay, the dirt is black. It's hard packed. Not even the hooves of the horses are enough to raise dust.  
The few trees that dot the landscape are gnarled. The bark is flaking off. Leaves lay in piles around the roots; black and crumpled.  
Even the horses seem to notice that something is wrong. More than once Harry's charger tries to turn away. Others prance nervously from foot to foot.  
The air goes cold too. Before, Eggsy felt the chill inside, now though it prickles across his skin. The further the go, the more unsettled people become. Nerves spread through the line in hushed whispers and the occasional burst of forced laughter. Even those without a lick of magic can sense that the land isn't dead from a natural disease.  
“How many deserters do ye think we’ll get tonight?” Merlin asks Harry under his breath.  
Harry glances over his shoulder down the line. Eggsy’s heart clenches at the expression on Harry’s face. There’s fear there, and resignation. He’s defeated already and they haven’t even reached the battlefield.  
“Half,” Harry responds at last.  
Merlin nods in agreement, mouth going tight again. That’s apparently the only exchange they need to have an entire conversation. Eggsy supposes after years of existing side by side there doesn’t need to be a long conversation to understand one another.  
He continues to practise a few spells as they ride, but with not nearly as much gusto. The fear from those around him, creeps into his heart and makes his shoulders tense. None of the spells go wrong exactly, but his aim is shit. Balls of light veer wildly to the left when he tries to practise lighting their way. Fire cooperates but when he tosses it, it turns into long thin streaks. Merlin calls an end to it when he almost causes a sinkhole trying to produce warmth to make the line more comfortable.  
They come to a halt the minute the sun starts to dip below the horizon. No one wants to try to set up camp in this territory when they can’t see. The worry something might sneak up on them in the night pervades the camp, and the fires burn all night.  
When Eggsy joins Roxy and her uncles at their fire, no one can think of anything to say. Roxy is shivering despite sitting close to the fire and being wrapped in a blanket. James is only a little better. He’s perched near the fire as well but he’s only in his riding clothes with no extra additions. Eggsy can’t tell what Percival is feeling, he’s as stoic as ever. Although Eggsy gets the feeling he might be holding it together even more in the hopes of keeping his family calm.  
Eggsy stands when he’s finished eating and squeezes Roxy’s shoulder. She offers him a tight smile but neither of them say anything. Whatever they say will just sound like an admission of fear.  
On the walk to Harry’s tent, Eggsy sees similar exchanges across many of the fires. The lack of merriment is even more pronounced than the night Eggsy first felt the tingles of Valentine’s magic. Most seem to be off to bed much earlier than before. Most also seem to be breaking off in pairs or groups to fight the cold.  
Eggsy pushes his way into Harry’s tent, surprised to find that Harry has already laid out both their bed rolls.  
“Hey,” Eggsy mumurs.  
Harry looks up from the map he has spread across the floor. He’s obviously shocked to see Eggsy standing there.  
”What,” Eggsy jokes, “Got somethin’ on my face?”  
“Why are you here Eggsy?” Harry asks.  
“Cause we’ve been keepin’ each other from freezing to death for days now?” Eggsy answers, confused.  
“No, I mean,” Harry starts, “I thought you would have left with everyone else.”  
Eggsy shakes his head and drops on to his side of the combined bedroll.  
“I’m not leaving. I’m the reason we’re even following through on this battle,” Eggsy reminds him.  
“I would not have blamed you for panicking. You have a long life ahead of you, and family who lives hundreds of miles away. You have no foot in this.”  
“I’m in it now though ain’t I,” Eggsy points out, “You took me in and protected me before you even knew that I could be useful. I’m not gonna just fuck off without repaying you.”  
He pulls back the furs and climbs underneath. The day was long before the cross into Valentine’s territory, and he’s exhausted. He thinks he might try to expand his shielding spell to cover the line tomorrow. For that he needs plenty of sleep.  
He extinguishes the lamps on his side of the tent. He closes his eyes, and tries to sleep. The chill keeps from drifting all the way so he falls into a doze instead. He wakes when Harry extinguishes his own lamps, and crawls underneath the furs as well. Instantly Eggsy feels warmer. Harry exudes heat like his insides are made of fire.  
“Thank you Eggsy,” Harry murmurs.  
“For what?” Eggsy asks, and rolls over to face Harry properly.  
“For staying,” Harry answers, “I need to be able to depend on someone other than Merlin.”  
“I told y’ mate, I’m here for this. No matter how it turns out,” Eggsy says stubbornly.  
“That is very noble of you.”  
“Nah. I’m just a loyal son of a bitch,” Eggsy jokes.  
Harry snorts, and Eggsy can see the smile in the hint of light from the fires outside. It’s a relief to know Harry can still laugh at a time so tense. A leader who can keep his cool is important. At least Eggsy assumes so.  
“I can see that,” Harry responds with a small chuckle, “You have hardly left Roxy’s side since you first arrived.”  
“Yeah. She’s a good pal.”  
“A pal,” Harry repeats.  
“Yeah. Why?”  
“No reason,” Harry responds evasively, “You better not slip away in the night after I fall asleep.”  
“Goodnight Harry,” Eggsy sighs, and rolls back over.  
*  
When Eggsy wakes in the morning, he notices how warm he is for the first time since encountering the aura of dark magic. He chases that feeling as much as he can. He buries his face in the furs and tries to go back to sleep.  
A hand twitches against his side, and Eggsy frowns. It has to belong to Harry but normally Harry is gone long before Eggsy stirs. Curious, he rolls over.  
Harry is still fast asleep. A faint strip of light breaks through the gap between the two tent flaps, and falls across his face. He looks less distressed in sleep, like the rest is truly wiping away the strain of leading a mishmash of five tribes into battle. The lines on his face are softened by the sunlight reflecting off of his chin and the bridge of his nose.  
Eggsy can’t tear his eyes away. Harry’s hand is still resting hot against his side, and Eggsy doesn’t want to move. Moving means an inevitable march to doom. Moving means another twelve hours of not touching Harry, and more distressing, another twelve as numbing hours on the back of Rona.  
Harry stirs, and slowly his eyes crack open. They fall on Eggsy staring at him, and Harry smiles groggily at him.  
“You’re awake early,” he observes, voice hoarse.  
“Yeah. Guess I finally got into the habit,” Eggsy teases.  
Harry rubs his eyes with the hand not resting on Eggsy’s side to clear away the fog of sleep. When he stops they are left staring at each other. Neither seem inclined to look away so Eggsy breaks the silence.  
“Morning.”  
“Good morning,” Harry responds softly.  
They fall quiet again. There isn’t anything to say. Eggsy isn’t prepared to get up and face the world, and it seems neither is Harry. He runs his thumb absently along Eggsy’s side, and it draws Eggsy back to reality.  
“Sorry. Mind slipped away.,” he says.  
Harry responds with a small yawn and a sleepy smile. His thumb continues to rub in gentle circles into Eggsy’s side.  
Eggsy lets his head roll forward trying to make his position a little more comfortable. He ends up just a hair’s breadth from Harry’s face. Eggsy sucks in a small surprised breath at being so close. Harry’s face is slightly blurry from being so near, but it looks like he might be a little surprised as well.  
Hesitantly, Eggsy tilts his head just a little further. His lips just brush Harry’s. A delightful tingle trickles down his spine when Harry presses back and deepens the kiss. Eggsy sighs, and Harry digs his thumb into Eggsy’s side properly. Eggsy shifts forward, intent on getting to feel Harry’s muscles for himself.  
Then a shout goes up outside. It startles them apart, but it seems like they might recover. Until the shouting spreads from one person to twenty, to fifty. Harry tosses aside the furs, and runs into the open to see what’s going on, leaving Eggsy alone.


	10. Chapter 10

Eggsy stumbles out of the tent a few minutes later, bundled against the cold. Thoughts of the kiss vanish as he takes in the fear and uncertainty of the people around him. He spots Roxy a little ways off and pushes his way through clumps of half dressed warriors to get to her.  
She looks up as he approaches. The panic seen on the faces of others is reflected in her face. She offers Eggsy a smile but it’s tight and almost painful. That doesn’t bode well. He’s never seen her lose her cool.  
“What happened?” Eggsy asks, surprised to find fear leaking into his voice as well.  
“We knew some people would leave last night. It’s all fun and games until you see how powerful your enemy is and all that,” Roxy says.  
“But?” Eggsy prompts.  
“No one left. They were just… well eviscerated? That’s the term Viron used before Uncle Percy made me leave,” she finishes.  
Eggsy’s blood runs cold. Now he understands the fear. If it was just wild animals, then that’s horrid enough as is. However with where they’re riding, there's always the off chance a human did it. If one of Valentine’s men discovered where they were and began picking them off, there’s no telling how many more they could lose before they reach their destination.  
“We know what did it?” he questions.  
“Viron hasn’t said yet,” Roxy answers, “It’s just a waiting game now.”  
“I’m guessing Merlin is with them?”  
“The council except for Charlie and I are there.”  
Eggsy nods, and wraps his arm over her shoulder. He gives her a light squeeze and moves off on his own.  
Logically, he knows it isn’t his fault. Merlin has magic too and is probably far more responsible for the well being of the people than Eggsy is. It’s just that Eggsy distinctly remembers his last thought from the night before. He was planning to practise a shielding spell in the first place but he procrastinated. Now people are dead.  
He moves off to the edge of camp on his own. If he can, he refuses to let anyone else die. Shielding is the most important thing so it will take top priority, but Eggsy figures if he can work invisibility or misdirection they will all be safer for it. He should wait for Merlin before trying something new, but he’s caught up in a meeting about those who died. There’s no time to wait for help.  
Eggsy takes a moment to breath deeply. He hasn’t warmed up to the day yet. He hasn’t had breakfast or enough time to wake his magic up properly. So, as Merlin once taught, he forces himself to clear his head. Once he feels properly prepared, he builds the spell.  
It’s the one spell he could use against Dean without being noticed. Of course at the time it was weak and mostly just kept him from bruising too badly. Now, though, he’s sure he can make it bigger and stronger. He just has to put in a little more magic.  
He draws it up from the bottom of his heart. He cares about these people. They might not be his people by birth, but they’ve become his over these months. It makes it easier to not just wrap the shield around himself, but to extend and widen it.   
“Amddiffyn,” he breathes.  
He feels it creep over the first jumble of tents. It’s a bit weak but as it crawls forward, other sections of it begin to strengthen. He keeps pressing. It wraps around Merlin’s cats, the ones who like to wind around Eggsy’s ankles as he moves around the camp. There’s something about wrapping it around breathing creatures that makes it easier to continue pushing. It drapes over Harry’s shoulders like a cloak, wraps around Roxy like a blanket, and soon every living thing and tent in the camp is shielded from anything seeking to cause them harm.

When he opens his eyes, the camp is shimmering as if caught in a heat wave despite the land itself being cold and dead. Eggsy is a little light headed. Probably because he worked such large magic without preparing. It was worth it though. It should hold until they leave, and Eggsy has feeling there will be a lot of discussions about whether this battle is worth pursuing. It’s unlikely they will be leaving today.  
He shuffles into camp proper. It’s like no one has moved since he left. Maybe a few are sitting that were standing and vice versa, but everyone is still broken into their original groups from when the news first spread.   
Harry and the rest of the council cross through the unplanned courtyard and the people turn to them like sunflowers to the sun. Harry shakes his head once to dismiss any questions and leads the council to the meeting tent. As Merlin passes Eggsy, he stops short. He turns to Eggsy with a small frown.  
“What did ye do?” he asks suspiciously.  
“What are you talking about?” Eggsy questions.  
“Don’t play coy Eggsy. Ye reek of magic,” Merlin insists.  
“I may have done just a small teeny itty bitty shielding spell. On the whole camp. And everyone in it,” Eggsy admits.  
Merlin sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. He stands like that, unmoving, for several seconds. Eggsy waits for the inevitable chewing out for doing something so large without Merlin’s help but it never comes.  
“I should be mad at ye for doing something so reckless,” Merlin grumbles, “but at a time like this I can’t blame ye. Wait next time?”  
“Yeah alright. Go catch up with everyone, Harry’s looking like he wants to kill us for stopping.”  
Merlin rolls his eyes at Eggsy but does stride meaningfully after the council. A few people eye him as though wanting to approach him about what Merlin said but they refrain. Eggsy is relieved by that because he’s fucking starving and still light headed, and there’s a headache pressing against the sides of his head.  
Roxy seems to have vanished in the short time it took him to cast the spell. He guesses she’s probably hiding away in Lyra’s tent. They aren’t exactly subtle.   
He follows his nose to the nearest fire. He could start his own but it’s so much easier to just mooch off of others. No one seems to mind. They’ve all kind of accepted him as an adopted pet.  
He comes to a stop several bunches of tents away. There’s meat sizzling on the cooking stone and it smells great. He approaches the group of men and women clustered there, and hesitates on the edge. He doesn’t want to invite himself in but he can’t just walk away from food. One man spots him, grins, and gestures him to come sit.  
He predicted correctly when he thought they wouldn’t be leaving that day. Harry and Merlin are caught up in a council meeting all day, and there’s a rumor spreading across the camp that the men were killed by a person. Apparently there were no teeth marks.  
The council breaks a few hours after night fall and Eggsy is waiting for both Harry and Merlin with bowls of stew. Merlin practically collapses out of gratitude, and Harry shoots Eggsy a small smile.  
“What took so long?” Eggsy asks as they sit in the grass.  
“We were discussing whether it was worth continuing on,” Harry answers.  
“And?” Eggsy prods.  
“We chose to continue but allow people the opportunity to leave,” Harry elaborates.  
“That includes ye if ye want Eggsy,” Merlin suggests.  
“Nah. I already told Harry I was sticking around. I ain’t abandoning y’ guys.”  
“Good lad,” Merlin murmurs and slumps down on the grass, “I am fucking done.”  
“You and me both,” Eggsy agrees, “Everyone’s been looking at me funny since you talked to me this morning.”  
“Tell them to go fuck themselves,” Merlin groans and Eggsy snorts.  
“You cuss more than me when you’re tired,” Eggsy points out.  
Merlin flips him off. Harry shakes his head fondly and nudges Merlin with the toe of his boot. Merlin grunts again.  
“Go to bed Merlin,” Harry instructs.  
Merlin peels himself up from the ground and stares blankly at the sky for a second. He bids them both goodnight and stumbles away into the night. They can hear him grouching at people his entire walk back to his tent.  
They exchange amused looks but focus on eating. Eggsy glances over at Harry only to find he’s already looking. Eggsy decides to just go for it.  
“We gonna talk about what happened this morning?” he asks.  
“The bodies?” Harry asks innocently.  
“Come on Harry.”  
“I suppose we must,” Harry sighs, “I happened to enjoy what happened. That is… you are a very sweet and lovely young man--”  
“I liked it too,” Eggsy says before Harry can run away with himself.  
“So you’re still planning on staying in my tent?”  
“Yeah. I’d freeze otherwise. Roxy has Lyra so the only person would be Merlin. Somehow I don’t think he’d wanna snuggle. Besides. You’re good at it,” Eggsy jokes.  
“I appreciate the compliment,” Harry says and relaxes against Eggsy.  
They sit quietly in the dark for a bit. The day was long and wrought with tension and fear, so it’s a wonder they aren’t more exhausted. Eggsy can’t quite bring himself to stand though. This moment is too nice.  
Harry is the one that finally breaks the silence. He rises, and holds his hand out to Eggsy.  
“Let’s go. I have no desire to be awake any longer.”  
Eggsy follows him back to the tent. The furs are still tossed haphazardly across the bedrolls form the fright this morning. Eggsy automatically straightens them out. For once there are no lamps to blow out so Eggsy climbs under with a sigh.  
They settle just like they did every night before but Eggsy is able to relax far more. Now that he doesn’t have to worry about sprawling into Harry’s personal space in the night, his brain can finally turn off.   
Harry, however, seems to be having the opposite reaction. He hovers awkwardly at the edge of the bed rolls, and doesn’t move to join. Eggsy waits for him to settle for almost a full minute before he sighs and sits up.  
“What’s up Harry?” he asks.  
“Are you sure it is okay with you if we sleep together again?” Harry blurts.  
“Gods,” Eggsy groans, “I’m fucking tired Harry. Get in here already.”  
“Oh thank fuck,” Harry breathes, and tosses his side of the furs to the side so he can slide under.  
Eggsy shuffles over a bit to make room for Harry and closes his eyes. The shielding spell drained him at the beginning of the day and he never quite recovered so he’s half asleep in seconds. He’s warm, and sleeping with a gorgeous man that he very much likes, it’s not difficult to pretend the battle doesn’t exist.  
He’s in that fuzzy place where dreams are just starting to creep around the edges of consciousness when he’s startled awake. It takes him a bit to identify what did it. There aren’t any odd noises outside, and the shield is holding. Eventually he realizes that it’s Harry. More specifically Harry’s hand. It’s resting on Eggsy’s side again. The last time Eggsy slept with a hand on his side was when he was home with Daisy.  
“Harry?” he asks softly.  
“Mmm?” Harry responds.  
Eggsy rolls over and blinks sleepily at Harry in the dark, “What do we tell people about us? Ain’t it like… against the rules or some shit for us to be kissing and all?”  
“Frankly no one gives a shit,” Harry mumbles, “Go to sleep.”  
Eggsy snorts and settles down into the furs once again. He watches Harry doze off, and settle into sleep, then leans over and presses another kiss to his lips.  
“Night Harry,” he whispers. Then rolls over and falls asleep properly.  
*  
They leave first thing the next morning shortly after Eggsy reapplies the shield. Eggsy didn’t know the men who were killed but he can feel the loss in the spirit of the warriors. There’s a distinct tinge of sadness in the air.  
Harry is riding ahead of him and Merlin today. The closer they get to Valentine's army, the more he needs to discuss strategy with the leaders of the other tribes. SO instead of taking time out of their travel to talk, they ride together far ahead of the rest of the line. Every now and then, Harry glances over his shoulder to shoot Eggsy a small smile.  
This doesn’t go unnoticed by Merlin. He pauses mid-lecture and looks at Eggsy severely.  
“Ye haven’t heard a word of what I’m saying have ye?” he demands.  
“Sorry,” Eggsy says and only partially means it. It’s worth getting chewed out by Merlin to catch all of Harry’s glances.  
“I give. How long has this been going on?” Merlin asks with a roll of his eyes.  
“Been dancing around each other for a while. Snogged yesterday morning,” Eggsy answers.  
Merlin makes a gagging noise and waves his hand in front of his face like he just smelled something disgusting. “Nevermind. I donnae want to know.”  
“You asked!” Eggsy cries indignantly.  
“I know! But lie to me next time. Say ye have no idea what I’m talking about,” Merlin instructs.  
Eggsy bursts into laughter. It’s obnoxiously loud in the tense silence of the line. Eggsy grimaces at Merlin when the leaders turn to look at him. He mouths an apology and one by one they turn back to Harry.  
“How much longer before we get there?” Eggsy asks.  
“We’ll be on him by tomorrow,” Merlin answers voice solemn, “We plan to wait until nightfall before we engage.”  
“Good luck to us,” Eggsy murmurs.  
“Indeed,” Merlin agrees.  
Eggsy didn’t think it was possible for the land to die any further but he was wrong. As they advance the landscape turns toxic. The soil is turned to sludge and it sticks to everything. Even the wheels of the carts that are designed to trek all weather aren’t safe. The soil drags at them, sucking them to the ground until they sink too low and get stuck. Boots are affected similarly. Twice the line is held in order to wait for someone to tug themselves free.  
Every time the soil is disturbed, a noxious smell rises. It permeates everything. No one is safe from the stench. Just when Eggsy thinks he’s gotten used to it, a fresh wave crashes over him and causes him to gag.  
The air gets colder too. Each breath creates tiny shards of ice in Eggsy’s lungs, despite there being no snow on the ground. Around him, people have scarves wrapped across their faces to ward against just that. (Although it does nothing to block the smell.) Merlin is riding with a hood pulled low over his forehead, trying to protect his scalp from the cold.  
The leaders call a halt around midday. The conditions are too rough and they need their energy. It only makes sense to stop.   
Eggsy eats lunch with Roxy and her uncles, and keeps one of the bones from the meat.   
“Could use your help on something,” he murmurs to her while her uncles are distracted.  
“What with?” she whispers back.  
“I don’t like sitting out here in the open. I’ve never obscured something though. I want you to let me know if it works,” he explains.  
“You’re on.”   
They slip away from the fire together and find a flat place to stand. Neither are willing to sit and have their clothes caked in the clinging mud.  
“I’ve never actually seen you work magic before,” Roxy points out.  
“It ain’t that impressive,” Eggsy tells her and holds his palm out with the rib bone laying on it, “Mostly it’s me standing around until shit works. Okay. so if I do this right the bone should either go invisible or your mind should trick you into thinking it ain’t there.”  
Roxy nods and settles into her fighting stance. Eggsy can’t blame her. He remembers all too well burning Merlin.  
He takes a deep breath, and holds his right hand out over the bone. He focuses on the shape of the bone, familiarizes himself with the texture. The magic snakes out of his hand and wraps itself around the bone, just waiting to be given instruction. He can taste the right word on the tip of his tongue, all he has to do is give it a shove.  
“Dubhar,” he spits, then looks up at Roxy, “It work?”  
Roxy is staring at him with wide eyes, her mouth open just slightly in surprise. It takes Eggsy a second to register the look as one of awe.  
“Rox?” Eggsy questions.  
“Did you know that you glow when you do that?” she asks.  
“No.”  
“That would explain why you don’t think you’re impressive.”   
“Rox? Did it work?” Eggsy reminds her.  
She snaps to and stares down at his extended palm. A small frown creases her forehead and she focuses intently. Eggsy grins in triumph when he sees her eyes slide away again and again.  
“It worked,” Roxy announces, “I know it should be there but I can’t focus long enough to see it.”  
“Perfect. Now I just gotta do that for the whole camp,” Eggsy says.  
They spend the day working on increasing the radius of his spell. It’s entirely different from working with Merlin. Where Merlin would push and shove for him to do better, Roxy errs on the side of caution. She reminds him not burn himself out by doing something he can’t handle, but pushes in her own quiet way. By nightfall, with Roxy’s encouragement, he’s managed to cover a swathe of land large enough to encompass the camp.  
He waves his hand to dismiss the spell. Roxy squeezes his shoulder in solidarity as they make their way back to camp. Both of them know that tomorrow, he won’t have the time or energy to cast a shield or obscuration. They will be entirely unprotected.  
Just like with the shielding spell, he lets the obscuring flow and creep at it’s own pace. Trying to force it will only make it harder. It settles like snow over the camp and there’s a buzz in the air that lets Eggsy know it worked.


	11. Chapter 11

The tribes return to themselves that evening. Brothers and Sisters in arms conducting their own pre-battle rituals. They want to have a night to themselves; after all it could be their last time all together. After tomorrow people may not return, and if they do there is no guarantee they will do so whole.   
Eggsy expects to be excluded from these gatherings all together. After all, he doesn’t belong to the Kingsman. Not officially, or in any way that truly counts. He’s an untested mage with no battle bonds to anyone he can speak of.   
As always, the Kingsman surprise him. As he starts to disappear to set his own tent up for the night alone, James pokes his head out of the meeting tent. He catches Eggsy by the elbow before he can move away.  
“Where are you off to young man?” he asks with that same jovial grin he always has.  
“My tent?” Eggsy answers uncertainly.  
“Nonsense. No one will be alone tonight. Get that perky butt of yours in here.”  
Before Eggsy has time to protest, James pulls him into the warmth and light of the tent. A pleased rumble goes up from the group when they see him. He’s ushered into the empty spot on Harry’s left. A flagon is pressed into his hand from somewhere and joins in the toast offered.  
“I would like to enact a blessing if I may,” Merlin slurs, well on his way to drunk already.  
“Here here!” someone calls.  
“All of ye join hands,” Merlin instructs.  
Everyone does as they’re told. Eggsy links hands with a young woman he’s never talked to on his left, and with Harry on his right. Eggsy shoots him a small smile and while Harry doesn’t return it, he does squeeze Eggsy’s hand to let him know he saw. It’s enough.  
“Everyone close your eyes,” Merlin calls. Once everyone has done so he closes his eyes as well and begins the chant, “Dia a 'chogaidh gàire oirnn.”  
The circle echoes his statement.  
“Leig dhuinn 'chùis air an dorcha a' bagairt ar daoine,” Merlin intones and once again the circle echoes him.  
“Till ar gaisgich dhuinn gu sàbhailte. A dhìon bho chron.”  
The chant repeats three times and it becomes almost hypnotic. Eggsy finds himself swaying in an invisible breeze.   
“Dean e mar sin. Dean e mar sin. Dean e mar sin,” Merlin breathes and the group mirrors. There’s a few moments of silence and Eggsy swears he can feel a rush of magic course through his veins albeit briefly. Then Merlin drops hands.  
“Let’s fucking drink!” he yells and a roar of agreement goes up around the tent.  
The merriment lasts longer than Eggsy would have expected anyone to last. A few warriors vanish into the night, too tired to drink any longer. Most stay until the grey of dawn creeps into the tent. Merlin has long since fallen asleep in a corner.  
Eggsy is drowsy but thankfully not drunk. He stayed far away from alcohol after his initial flagon. He smiles sleepily at Harry as he approaches.  
“Tired?” he asks.  
“Yeah. Keeping your asses obscured is draining,” Eggsy answers, and takes Harry’s offered hand. He’s pulled to his feet and he tucks himself close to Harry’s side.   
“Let’s get you into the tent then,” Harry chuckles.  
The sunlight is blinding after the night spent in the darkened tent. Eggsy grunts in annoyance and tucks his face against Harry’s chest to block out the light. Harry’s long fingers card through the hair at the nape of his neck. They stumble slightly when they step in a particularly sticky patch of soil but otherwise they keep moving.  
Harry holds open the flaps of his tent and ushers Eggsy inside. Eggsy collapses face first into the furs. He holds his hand out toward Harry with a small whine. Harry takes the nonverbal clue for what it is, and joins Eggsy on the bedrolls.  
Once Harry is settled, Eggsy presses as close as he physically can. The idea that they are riding into battle that night scares him more than he is willing to admit. This thing with Harry, whatever it is, has really only just begun and he isn’t ready for it to end. He isn’t sure he will ever be ready for it to end.  
Some of his nervousness must show through. Maybe in the way his hands won’t stand still, or how he can’t seem to get comfortable on their pallet. Harry notices. He places his own hands on top of Eggsy’s, trying to steady their fluttering.  
“Is something wrong?” he asks, voice soft in the silver dawn light.  
“Not exactly,” Eggsy answers, “Just worrying about tonight.”  
“That’s normal,” Harry assures him, “You never stop being worried when going into battle. The first is by far the scariest.”  
“Just don’t want anyone I care about to die yeah? Not Merlin or Roxy or…” he trails off.  
“Or?” Harry prompts.  
“You.” Eggsy grumbles, a little embarrassed by the admission.  
Harry sucks in a sharp breath that sounds suspiciously like “oh”. He leans forward and kisses Eggsy deeply. His hand slips to Eggsy’s cheek and holds him close when they pull back to breathe.  
“I swear I will survive this. I refuse to let this battle kill me.” Harry says.  
“You can’t promise that Harry. Battles don’t care who goes.” Eggsy points out.  
“Well the battle is just going to have to make an acception for us.” Harry jokes, trying to lighten the mood.  
Eggsy snorts and presses another kiss to Harry’s lips. Harry deepens the kiss, clearly as desperate as Eggsy to make this connection last. Harry’s hand slips from Eggsy’s cheek to his shoulder, and comes to rest at his hip. Eggsy angles himself closer, seeking Harry’s warmth under their mound of furs.  
Harry’s fingers trail under Eggsy’s tunic, and his palm flattens against Eggsy’s ribs. They’re so warm to Eggsy’s skin that it feels like he’s burning. Harry’s hand slides up, taking Eggsy’s tunic with it. They break from their desperate kisses just long enough to toss the tunic to the side.  
Eggsy’s hands slip to the laces of Harry’s trousers, and that’s enough to startle Harry into pulling away.  
“Eggsy--” he starts, but Eggsy cuts him off.  
“I know what you’re thinking,” Eggsy says, panting slightly, “But I want this. Chances are one of us is gonna die tonight yeah? I want us to give this to each other before that happens.”  
“Are you sure?” Harry asks, brow creased with concern.  
“Course I am.” Eggsy answers.  
Harry urges Eggsy close once again, and draws him into another searing kiss. This time when Eggsy reaches for Harry’s laces, Harry doesn’t stop him.

Harry looks beautiful in his armor. It isn’t the heavy chainmail, and metal plates that Eggsy has come to associate with armor because of the Knights that periodically swept through the Fringe. It’s heavy leather, and emphasizes all the muscles that Harry has. His sword glints in the late afternoon sunlight as he sharpens it. When he pauses in his task, Eggsy leans over and kisses him.  
“What was that for?” Harry asks softly.  
“Just wanted to do it one last time before we ride,” Eggsy answers.  
Harry smiles sadly, and draws Eggsy in by the back of his neck. He kisses Eggsy hard, and deep, like he’s trying to memorize the way Eggsy’s lips feel against his. Eggsy sighs softly into Harry’s mouth, and Harry pulls back again. They rest their foreheads together and just breathe.  
“One last time before we ride,” Harry repeats, and lets go.  
He returns to sharpening his blades. Eggsy is content to watch him.   
When the sun dips below the horizon, they mount their horses and ride for the lake. By the time they arrive night has fallen. With it comes the freezing wind that they’ve come to expect as an effect of Valentine’s magic.  
It’s so dark that Eggsy can barely see those next to him. The moon is shrouded by clouds that scuttle across the sky in the harsh wind. Occasionally there’s a puff of steam from a horse or human breathing but it’s difficult to tell which is which. It’s dead silent, except for the light lapping of the lake.   
No one wants to run the risk of blowing the cover they’ve established with the dark. The normal fidgeting noises present in a large group of people waiting, are nonexistent. Everyone is just staring at the lake. Beyond it lies almost inevitable death.  
Merlin is already waiting at the edge of the lake, prepared to freeze it. Eggsy is just waiting for the all clear from him to join.  
Eggsy nearly leaps out of his skin when a hand brushes his shoulder. He sighs when he recognizes Harry’s outline.  
“Sorry,” Harry whispers.  
“It’s fine,” Eggsy whispers back.  
“Eggsy--” Harry starts but Eggsy cuts him off.  
“Anything y’ say right now will sound too much like goodbye,” Eggsy insists.  
Harry nods, once, in understanding then kisses Eggsy one last time. They break apart and Harry squeezes his shoulder.  
Merlin beckons Eggsy forward. With a deep calming breath, Eggsy moves to join him on the banks of the lake. They’ve practised the freezing spell a few times with mixed results. Now it’s more important than ever they get it right.   
They link hands, and stretch their free hands out to the lake. Magic flows freely between them until it mixes with no definable features. They glance at each other for confirmation, then direct their attention to the lake. They murmur the spell in unison, and soon ice begins to spread across the surface of the water.  
Once it seems that it’s thickened, Eggsy steps carefully out on the ice to see if it holds his weight. He jumps on it to test that it won’t crack under stress. Satisfied, he turns to Harry and nods.  
Harry clicks his tongue and urges his horse forward. Silently, the line follows behind him. Nothing can be heard except the gentle breathing from the people around him. Not even the horses make a stray noise.  
The success of this battle hinges on striking before anyone knows what is happening. If Valentine’s army retaliates while they’re on the banks of the lake, the battle is lost.   
Everyone is tense as they cross. The magic appears to hold but there’s no guarantee there aren’t any weak spots. The camp looms into sight. The further across the lake they get. Most of the fires are extinguished but one or two still flicker. They can’t extinguish the fires without drawing attention so they’ll have to work around it.   
They reach the other side safely without a single crack in the ice. Once everyone is safely to the other side, Harry gestures over his shoulder, and the first wave creeps forward. Everyone left behind waits with bated breath. All it takes is one person crying out and the battle will begin. It’s a matter of when, not if.   
All they can make out of the warriors are shadows flitting among the tent. Eggsy resists the urge to obscure them. He can't afford to waste energy on magic that isn’t necessary. He needs all his strength for battle.  
A scream pierces the stillness of the night. Despite being prepared for such a thing, it makes Eggsy flinch. At first it seems like no one heard. The camp doesn’t stir. Then another shriek goes up. Then another.  
Soon the camp is flooded with people. Their reactions vary from bewilderment to rage. Every one of them is armed. Before they can realize that there’s an army at the edge of their camp, Harry calls for attack.  
All hell breaks loose.  
There’s a mighty roar from the warriors. They rush into the camp, brandishing weapons high above their heads. The air is filled with the sound of clashing of metal.  
Eggsy loses track of Harry and Merlin in the chaos but he ignores the voice in his head urging him to find them. He takes stock of his surroundings. Most everyone is locked in a vicious with someone else.   
He catches sight of Fiske locked in a fight with someone easily twice his size. Eggsy didn’t think it was possible to be taller or more muscular than Fiske. The man he’s fighting is a giant. He dwarfs the men on horses. There are massive scars running down both of his arms that look leftover from burns. Fiske is being forced to stumble back again, and again as the giant advances.   
A sharp pain blooms in Eggsy’s left shoulder and he pivots hard in surprise. The blade imbedded there yanks from his attackers grip, leaving them down a weapon. The adrenaline means he’s able to ignore the pain for the time being. He focuses on his attacker.  
The woman he’s fighting is only slightly smaller than the man Eggsy noticed fighting Fiske just a few moments earlier. Her hair flies around her head in blonde clouds every time she moves. Her arms bulge with muscles, and dark swirling tattoos emphasize the sheer mass.  
Undeterred by the loss of her weapon, she comes at him again. A wicked, black blade arcs down towards Eggsy’s head. Eggsy slams it to a stop with his magic and yanks the blade free with the same spell. He grabs it for himself and darts forward. She sidesteps him easily, and brings her knee up hard into his stomach.  
Air leaves Eggsy in a rush. Unbalanced, he falls to the ground and his weapon goes skittering away. He’s worried, in the hazy part of his logical mind, that he might throw up. That thought is quickly chased from his mind.  
The woman presses him to the dirt with her foot, and bends down. Eggsy feels like he’s suffocating because of the weight.   
She takes hold of the blade still somehow lodged in his shoulder, and rips it free. Eggsy howls in pain. Blood gushes from the wound. It it runs down Eggsy’s arm, leaving it warm and tacky. It soaks into the ground, and the smell of copper floods his nose. It runs over his neck and cakes in his hair. His hand is tingling from the sudden loss.  
She straightens up and removes her foot. Then she dives in at him with the blade, clearly intending to stab him through his back. Eggsy gathers his pain to him and shoves it out at the woman above him in a wave. She stumbles back with a grunt of pain. Eggsy rolls onto his back, grabs the woman’s wrist with his magic, and forces her to shove the blade deep into her gut. She lets out a guttural scream and falls to the ground herself. Eggsy ignores the pain in her eyes as she falls, and clambers back to his feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merlin's chant: "God of war smile upon us. Let us defeat the darkness threatening our people. Return our warriors to us safely. Protect them from harm. Make it so. Make it so. Make it so."


	12. Chapter 12

ggsy grabs his shoulder and breathes through the pain. Healing might not have been the main focus of his training but he knows enough to mend a gash. He bites his lip to keep from crying out, then lets the healing magic flood into it. It feels like his shoulder is burning. Not the nice burn of used muscles either. It feels like someone poured liquid fire into his wound. Eggsy whimpers in pain, and squeezes his eyes shut. Finally the spell recedes, and Eggsy pulls his hand away to take a look. There’s nothing but a thin line to indicate he’d been cut at all.  
He takes stock of the battle once again. Fiske is still battling his giant. Eggsy darts between the groups trying to kill each other, and heads straight for Fiske. When he gets close enough, he reaches out and places his palm flat against the giant’s back. Lightning arcs from his palm and the giant goes rigid. He stumbles sideways, weakened by the spell and turns to see what did it. He lets out an animalistic growl and advances on Eggsy.   
A sword bursts from his mouth in a spray of blood. He’s suspended there for a second, the blade holding him up. Then the blade slides backwards out of the body with a sickening squelch. Fiske is standing there when it falls to the ground with a crunch. They nod once at each other, then split off.  
Eggsy is immediately locked into a fight with a similar giant. He’s prepared this time though. He keeps out of reach of the giant’s excessively long arms. Bulk and strength is no match for agility. Eggsy darts in under his exposed arm, and tears a hole in the man’s stomach with his magic.  
The pain barely seems to register. He doesn’t even stumble. Instead Eggsy is lifted by the back of his neck and is thrown through the air. He’s always wanted to try flying but after this he thinks he’ll have to give it a miss. The soaring isn’t that bad even though he feels like his neck has been liquified. The landing however? That fucking sucks. He doesn’t have time to break his fall. He hits the ground with a solid thud that knocks the wind out of him for the second time that night. Nothing is broken.  
He lands near a discarded dagger and on instinct, grabs it. The giant’s foot crashes down next to where his hand just was, and Eggsy rolls away before the foot can come closer. He kneels up, and throws the dagger at the giant. His magic guides it where it needs to be and it lodges in the giant’s eye up to the hilt. He falls to his knees, and gathers magic to him for the final blow. A horse's hoof connects with the giant’s head and he tips forward onto his face. The same hoof lands square on the back of his head as the horse charges, and his head splits like an overripe fruit.  
Eggsy doesn’t have time to be revolted. He’s up in a second and searching. He spots Roxy. She’s facing five attackers on her own. She keeps them at a distance, trying to prevent them from circling her. Each time they advance, Roxy knocks their weapons aside, stabs one of them, and darts away. She can’t last that way for long though. If she makes one wrong step she’ll either end up a kebab, or surrounded.  
Eggsy holds his hand out toward her. He focuses on the gap between her and the line of five men. The magic bubbles freely to his finger tips, and the space he’s focused on goes up in a blaze. A wall of fire solidifies between Roxy and her attackers.  
She glances around and shoots Eggsy a grin. She inclines her head toward the five men, and Eggsy understands the signal. He gestures outward. Palm facing the flames. The wall advances and the five men are swallowed in the fire.  
Roxy mouths thank you, and moves to James’s side. She takes on the second man he’s battling, evening the fight.  
Eggsy wraps his magic around a group of enemy riders just entering the fray. When they reach another group of Valentine’s men, he yanks. The riders tumble off their horses and knock the other men to the ground. They are crushed under their own massive weight and struggle to get up. Eggsy opens a gaping hole beneath them, and bury them there.  
It feels great to be on the offense finally. The adrenaline sharpens his senses, makes it easier to spot those who need help.  
Nearby Charlie is struggling to fight back a woman. Her red hair is pulled tightly back in braids, preventing it from falling in her eyes. She’s much smaller than the warriors they have been battling but it soon becomes clear as to why she’s allowed on the field. She’s using magic.  
Charlie is no match for her when she keeps opening gashes in both his skin and armor without touching him. Eggsy debates for a few seconds whether Charlie is worth the hassle. After all, Charlie wouldn’t save him if the situation was reversed. Eggsy dismisses the idea of abandoning him to his fate. They need as many people as possible if they want to turn the tide. He sighs, and dives into the fray.She lets out a terrifying giggle, and flicks her wrist to cut Charlie again. Eggsy deflects the spell, and blasts her back several feet.   
Charlie glances over his shoulder, probably to thank Merlin for saving him. When he sees it’s Eggsy, his face contorts in shock. Eggsy shrugs in equal amounts of confusion.  
The woman advances on them again, hand out stretched. Her lip is dripping blood where she bit it as Eggsy blasted her. Eggsy goes with his gut instinct. As she works up a spell of her own, he wraps his magic around her hand, and twists it.   
The sound her hand makes as it breaks echoes in Eggsy’s ears. The woman screams in pain, and cradles her injured hand to her chest. She marches on anyway, and stretches her left hand out. Eggsy isn’t quick enough to defend himself this time. A gash opens across his thigh and he stumbles in pain.  
The woman doesn’t hesitate. She throws her good arm out, and Eggsy is once again sent flying. He can say with certainty that he dislikes it even more the second time around. His head snaps to the side as he’s jerked through space. He creates a cushion of air so when he falls, he’s able to land without hurting himself. He rolls as he hits the ground and comes back onto his knees. He flings a fireball haphazardly at the woman, praying it doesn’t hit someone they need in order to keep the battle on their side.  
It makes contact with her shoulder. She flinches and brings up her broken hand to extinguish the flames. Her cloak is singed away in that spot, and Eggsy can see that the skin underneath is a bright angry red.   
Without missing a beat, Eggsy lashes out again. He yanks a rope free from one of the tents with his magic, and it wraps around her legs like a vice. The woman falls and Eggsy takes advantage of her struggle to get free. Charlie stumbles by, locked in a vicious skirmish of his own. His dagger glints on his belt, and Eggsy pulls it free.  
He charges at the woman dagger in hand, ready to sink the blade in her throat and be done. He arcs the blade downward as he gets close enough but the woman blasts the rope free of her legs, and rolls out of the way. She slams her fist into Eggsy’s jaw. He reels backwards from the impact and drops his borrowed dagger. She swings at him again. Instinctually Eggsy raises both hands above his head to block the blow. The force the shield he throws up bounces the woman off him. The impact rings in his ears. His magic shrieks at it vibrates against hers.   
His right thumb burns and it distracts him from the woman scraping herself back up of the floor. His ring is glowing red hot. It looks fresh from the forge. The words the little girl said in Kara’s Vale come back to him. “You’ll know how to use it when the time comes”. He glances between the ring on his thumb, and the woman angrily drawing great sheets of ice from the ground. If the ring is glowing now, it must mean that it’s time to use it. He just hopes he can figure it out before those sheets of ice are thrown at him.  
He closes his eyes, and focuses his magic on the ring. He can feel the runes etched into the metal pulse. His magic flows in the channels that the runes create, and sinks into the metal of the ring itself. The magic feeds back from the ring into his hand, focusing it in a way he’s never managed before.  
His eyes snap open just as the sheets of ice come flying at him. He throws his hands out to stop them, and shatters them into a fine powder. The woman freezes in her pursuit, just as surprised as Eggsy.  
Eggsy recovers faster than she does. The ring is still pulsing so Eggsy tries another spell. He sends a blast of energy at her, expecting her to fly back and eventually crash land. Instead a beam of light and pure energy funnels from his palm and hits her square in the chest. She is thrown hundreds of feet into the air, further than anything he has ever managed before. She crashes to the ground with a massive hole in her chest, and doesn’t move.  
Eggsy stares at his hand in wordless amazement. He’s never had his magic channeled so efficiently or effectively. Not when he was training with Merlin. Not when he was young. Certainly not under the battle conditions he’s currently facing.  
He takes stock of the battle. It’s difficult to tell who’s winning. He can see Merlin, sweat dripping off his brow as he works off another of Valentine’s mages. Roxy is fighting on his left, and has a man to his knees. The glint of her sword is deadly in the firelight. He can just make out Harry’s silhouette, somehow still astride his horse.  
There’s a hill just on the edge of the camp and Eggsy makes a dash for it. If he gets to the top, he can change the tide firmly in their favor. He’ll have the perfect vantage point to help pick off each of Valentine’s warriors.  
He reaches the base of the hill and finds himself crashing to the ground. He twists violently around to see what tripped him. A man is holding tightly to Eggsy’s ankle, despite missing his own. His face is streaked with blood and he doesn’t seem willing to let Eggsy reach the top of that hill.   
Eggsy softens his magic and uses it to shove the man away. This time there’s no massive pulse of energy. The man just slides away. Eggsy takes half a second to be proud of figuring out how to use the ring properly before he scrambles to his feet. He digs his feet into the soft soil of the hill, and climbs.  
It’s more difficult than he thought it would be to get to the top. The soil gives way more quickly beneath his boots the harder he pushes. It’s like the hill itself is crumbling away. He reaches the top, and collapses to the ground, face up. He’s breath is coming in heavy pants, like a wounded hog. He’s sweating like one too. His shirt is clinging to him in sticky patches. He drags himself back to his feet. He has a responsibility to these people to do everything he can to help.   
The battle rages on below him. Fires have spread from the one or two that were originally lit. Entire tents are ablaze now. It’s difficult to tell through the haze of smoke, and the blur of movement, who is fighting for whom. Most of the almost giants are gone now. They must have been Valentine’s first line of defense. Barring that identification though, Eggsy is fighting blind.  
He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes again. He’s never tried a locater spell before. Merlin only briefly mentioned them during training but it’s the only way he will be able to tell everyone apart. He blocks out the screams, the smoke. He ignores the voice in his head bellowing at him to get a move on. He clears his mind.  
He lets the magic surround his heart. These people are connected to him there now. They’ve become family. For the first time since he was first doing magic as a child, he asks it to do what he wants. He asks for it to illuminate the hearts of his loved ones. He asks it to guide him to the right people. When the magic forms a tight bubble in his chest, he directs it outward toward his ring. It burns there for a few seconds, then releases into the air.  
Eggsy opens his eyes, praying to all the gods he’s ever heard of that it worked. Balls of light the size of his fist bob in front of his eyes. Then one by one they flit out across the darkened sky. They come to a halt still bobbing above the heads of warriors below. Eggsy is able to make out Roxy’s face in the new light. It worked.  
Eggsy decides to take the time to be proud later. He knows who is who now. He needs to start picking off Valentine’s force. He gathers the last dregs of his energy and forces it to that place inside where his magic forms.   
He creates a ball of energy and throws it. His arms feel like lead but he pushes on. He directs the ball of energy to hit anyone without a ball of light following them. The ring helps him focus the energy as he does so. He brings another to his finger tips and lobs it into the crowd again. He can see where they make impact. Suddenly the balls of the light that were frantically dancing in the air are still. Then they shift and begin dancing anew.  
Eggsy knows that he’s going to have one hell of a headache tomorrow but it’s worth it if it means his friends will be there too. His legs want to give out but he ignores them for all he’s worth. Fire has always been easy for him. It sucks up less of his energy. So he conjures sheets of the stuff and throws it down into the fight. It’s less efficient than the energy blasts but it still does the trick. He hates the screams caused by the fire as much as he loves that it means his friends are safe.  
Eggsy braces his hands on his knees and takes a few deep gulping breaths. He’s exhausted. All his reserves are drained. Still he sends out another, much shakier, sheet of fire. It makes contact where he wants but he doesn’t have the energy to check beyond that.  
His knees buckle and he falls with a thud into the soft soil. It soaks the knees of his pants. He decides he can handle the magic from kneeling too. He drags a bolt of lightning down from the sky. It cracks down and briefly illuminates the world below him. It seems like Valentine's warriors are losing.  
Exhausted, Eggsy collapses face first into the soil. He closes his eyes and takes a minute to rest. He can’t focus on doing magic when it feels like his limbs are made of stone. The magic still courses through his torso, keeping warm. It should stay that way for a while so just a few minutes of rest should be enough to put him back in the fight.  
A branch snaps somewhere nearby. Eggsy rolls to his back to see who it is. he’s expecting Merlin, maybe Harry. He was not in any way expecting Charlie. Eggsy pushes himself to sit up, and squeezes his eyes against the spinning.  
“Charlie? What’re you doin up here?” he asks.  
Charlie looks momentarily guilty. The look is there and gone in a flash but Eggsy is sure he saw it. He crosses the short distance between them and holds his hand out to Eggsy. Eggsy frowns in confusion but takes the offered hand. He hoists himself up with Charlie’s help, and immediately stiffens as the point of a knife digs into his stomach.  
“The fuck are you doing?” Eggsy hisses.  
“I’m taking you with me,” Charlie says shortly, “Move.”  
He grabs Eggsy by the shoulder and hauls him around so that they’re back to front. Then gives him a hard shove towards the grove of skeletal trees at the other edge of the hill. Charlie punctuates the movement with a vicious dig of the point of the knife. Eggsy flinches and can feel a trickle of blood slide down his back. It cakes on his skin along with the blood from the gash from his earlier fight with Valentine’s mage.  
“How could you do this,” Eggsy demands, “We was your family!”  
“Yes well. Valentine can be very persuasive,” Charlie sneers, “And it isn’t like any of you cared about me anyway.”  
“That ain’t--” Eggsy starts but is cut off as Charlie shoves him.  
“Shut up. Keep moving,” Charlie snaps.  
Eggsy waits for his opportunity. As they approach the edge of the treeline, Eggsy kicks back and connects with Charlie’s knee. It makes a satisfying crunch as he stumbles away. Eggsy makes a break for it. He aims for the battle, figuring he can disappear into the crowd.  
He doesn’t make it far. Charlie recovers and tackles Eggsy to the ground. Eggsy twists in Charlie’s grip, and pulls his hand free from the struggle. He digs his nails into Charlie’s cheek. Charlie jerks his head out of the way, pulls his fist back, and punches Eggsy in the face. His nose crunches, and everything goes black.


	13. Chapter 13

Harry raises his sword high in triumph as Valentine’s army flees to the hills. Cheers echo around the decimated campsite, at the sight of his sword. Six hundred warriors who only trained together for a month, just successfully pushed back a thousand warriors, many of whom fought with magic. Valentine is going to be forced to regroup. Now that he knows the strength that lies in the warriors of Raointean Mòra it’s unlikely he’ll launch an attack any time soon. It will give Harry an opportunity to build their numbers. The tribes who couldn’t be reached or were too far away to make it in time, can rally to their cause. With any luck they can go directly after Valentine next.   
Harry is bleeding profusely from a gash on his chest. He isn’t sure when it happened, the heat of battle obscured the pain. It’s catching up to him now though. Those who survived the battle are no better, and often far worse off than he is. Viron will have his hands full with the wounded, but they have bought Raointean Mòra some more time.   
He lowers his sword, and slumps on an upturned supply barrell. The adrenaline slowly leaves his body and without the rush of the battle, he can feel every one of his injuries. His gash strains every time he moves, and he can feel bruises forming. There is a cut on his forehead from one of Valentine’s men bashed him with the pommel of his sword, and it’s dripping into his eyes. His muscles tremble with overexertion. Merlin seems to be in a similar state when he joins Harry on the barrel.  
“We did it,” Harry states.  
“Aye. We did it,” Merlin agrees.  
They share a look, then burst into a fit of giggles. Merlin is laughing so hard tears are streaming down his face.  
“Fucking shit,” Merlin snorts, “ We’re awful. I can’t believe ye are making me giggle in the aftermath of a fucking battle.”  
“We wouldn’t be giggling if we lost,” Harry points out with a grin.  
“That is true. We could nae have done it without Eggsy however,” Merlin says.  
“The lightning bolts,” Harry exclaims, “I had no idea he could do that.”  
“I didn’t either,” Merlin admits, “Have ye seen him?”  
Harry considers that for a second. He saw Eggsy on the top of the hill. He was glowing bright with magic, then Harry was distracted by the flurries of magic raining down, and defeating the last of the attackers who wanted to fight. The magic stopped some time around then, and Harry hadn’t seen what happened after that.  
“No. Last I saw he was on the hill. He’s probably either walking back or catching his breath the same as us,” Harry answers.  
“Aye probably. Once I can move again I will go search for the lad. Just so we can get a final tally,” Merlin says absently.  
Roxy joins them a few minutes later. She collapses at their feet with a dramatic groan and it draws a dry chuckle from Harry. He knows exactly how she feels. He was once run over by a horse, and a cart full of turnips when he drunkenly tried to cross a road. He was less worn out then than he is now. Roxy doesn’t move for several minutes, just lays there breathing.  
“Seen Eggsy?” she asks, muffled the arm she’s resting her head on.  
“No. He’s probably just resting like the rest of us and is asleep at the top of the hill,” Harry answers.  
Roxy grunts in acknowledgement. She doesn’t seem inclined to move, and with how hard she fought it is completely understandable. Harry saw her slice a man from balls to head with her sword.   
One by one, the warriors come filtering back to where Harry is gathered. Their a bedraggled lot but it seems like most of them made it out alive. There are cuts, broken bones, wounds but these will mend. Better injured and alive, than dead.  
The fear that had built up through out the end of the battle as Harry was convinced they had lost, abates as more people arrive. They didn’t lose nearly as many people as Harry thought they would. Even Percival and James made it through the battle. A shock in itself considering how reckless and cocky James can be in a fight.   
When Roxy sees them, she finally moves. She jumps up from where she was lying, and runs to them. Percival catches her, and pulls her in a tight hug. James is practically in tears with joy at seeing her. He wraps them both in his arms.  
The last warrior filters into the massive group, but there is still no sign of Eggsy. Harry frowns, and turns to look at Merlin. He looks just as concerned. He meets Harry’s gaze after a quick scan of the crowd.  
“Are you coming with me?” Harry asks, and stands from the barrel.  
“Of course,” Merlin answers, and stands up as well.  
As they leave, Harry lets Percival know where they are going. The hilltop is startlingly close to the direction Valentine’s men fled. It wouldn’t do to be caught unaware, and captured. The war they are fighting relies on them.  
The smell of blood hangs heavy in the air as he and Merlin cross the battlefield. Bodies are strewn across the grass. It’s satisfying in a macabre kind of way. The bodies of Valentine’s men out number the bodies of their warriors ten to one.  
The soil of the hill slips beneath their feet. More like a pile of silt than an actual hill. Harry’s muscles are ready to give up. He needs food, and a hell of a lot of sleep. He won’t be able to do either until they find Eggsy.  
Harry is sure that they will find Eggsy once they reach the top. He must have fought harder than anyone. The magic he performed toward the end would have drained a fully charged Merlin. It would only make sense that he crashed.  
When they reach the top of the hill, Eggsy is gone. There are signs of a struggle. The soft soil is perfect for retaining foot prints. There are two sets that lead all around the hill, and criss cross over each other. At the edge of the hill just before it slopes down, there’s a massive imprint, roughly the size of a body.  
“He’s gone,” Harry murmurs, heart freezing in fear.  
*  
Eggsy’s entire body throbs in pain. Whatever he is laying on is delightfully soft but that only does so much to comfort him. It’s like every muscle in his body was squeezed until they turned to putty, then frozen in the odd shapes they created. There’s an even worse pain in his face.  
It takes Eggsy a few minutes for to connect all the dots. His brain is adrift in the pain and exhaustion. Then it comes flooding back. The battle, the fight with Charlie, the massive amounts of magic he expended. He sits bolt upright.  
That is a huge mistake. The delicate scabs that had formed on his wounds pop. Eggsy groans. He looks down at himself, expecting blood to start dripping down his skin. He finds bandages instead.   
Once the pain fades into a constant thrum instead of sharp peaks, Eggsy takes stock of what’s around him. He’s in a proper bed and not on a bed roll. The bed is infinitely better than the one he had on the Fringe. The frame is solid wood, and the mattress is soft. There’s a soft blanket, and crisp clean sheets.  
The room he’s in is stone. The walls are the same grey stone as the floors. There a few rugs draped haphazardly on the floor. Eggsy has absolutely no fucking clue where he is.  
There’s a window set in the wall opposite. Figuring it’s his best chance to figure out where the hell he is, Eggsy shifts to the edge of the bed. He ignores the pounding in his head, and swings his feet out bed. The gash in his thigh protests as he stands, but Eggsy brushes that to the side too. He’s dealt with this much pain before because of Dean.  
The window looks out over a courtyard but not much else. If Eggsy squints hard enough he can just make out mountains in the far distance. He’s truly fucked. He has no clue how to get back to Harry.  
The door swings open and Eggsy startles. A woman is paused in the doorway, carrying a tray. Her long dark hair is sleek, and falls past her shoulders. Somehow it stays immaculately in place as she strides further into the room. She dresses similarly to Roxy; tunic, tight leather trousers. She sets the tray down on the bed and turns to face him.  
“I’m here to change your bandages,” she states but the look she gives Eggsy makes it clear that she would rather be causing the wounds instead of tending them.  
“I can do that…” Eggsy suggests, a little uncertain.  
The woman rolls her eyes, “i will leave the tray behind. I will return with food shortly.”  
She pivots to walk back out the door, and that’s when Eggsy notices. Both her legs are amputated at the knee. In place of peg legs, curved metal blades make up the legs and feet. Eggsy is fairly certain they are made of magic. The door clicks shut on her way out.  
Eggsy crosses the room back to the bed, and sinks down on the edge. The tray contains bandages, a bowl of water, and a rag. Eggsy is tempted to just heal himself and be done with it but Viron’s warning comes back to him about how people can develop a tolerance to healing. So he carefully unwinds the bandage from the gash in his thigh. He goes through the whole process of cleaning it, and rebandaging it. He repeats the process on the cut Charlie left in his back.  
He sets the tray aside, and lays back on the bed. For having only been moving for a short period of time, he’s completely drained. He decides to take a nap until the woman comes back with food.   
He’s startled awake by the door opening. The woman is back with a tray of food like promised. She sets it down, gives it a murderous look, and picks up the tray with Eggsy’s old bandages. Eggsy has a feeling Roxy would lose her mind over how beautiful the woman is.  
“Eat,” she instructs shortly, “Valentine will be in shortly.”  
The door clicks shut behind her once more. Eggsy digs into the food without much of a second thought. If they wanted to kill him, they would’ve just had Charlie do it while he had the chance. They aren’t going to poison him before they get what they want from him. With every bite of bread and meat his headache recedes as does the exhaustion. It doesn’t abate entirely but that’s a factor of needing to heal.  
The door swings open for the third time that day. The same woman comes back in, and takes up residence by the window. She doesn’t say anything. Then a man swaggers in after her.  
Eggsy is barely able to take in the man’s full appearance. He’s never seen so many bright colors in clothes before in his life. Between that and the grin, Eggsy is distracted.  
“Eggsy!” he cries and Eggsy is further surprised by the lisp, “I have heard so much about you.”  
“How?” Eggsy asks suspiciously.  
“Charlie of course,” the man answers, “He’s been very useful to our cause. Isn’t that right Gazelle?”  
The woman, Gazelle, nods absently.  
“You Valentine?” Eggsy asks.  
“Indeed I am. It is a joy to meet you,” Valentine responds and holds his hand out for Eggsy to shake.  
“Can’t say the same,” Eggsy responds, eyeing Valentine’s hand distrustfully.  
“I understand. I understand,” Valentine appeases, “You just spent months with people telling you that I was up to no good.”  
“Something like that,” Eggsy agrees.  
“Well I’m not all that bad. People don’t like my methods but I’m not doing this for any evil reason,” Valentine explains.  
“Explain your reason then,” Eggsy challenges.  
“Spirit. I like it,” Valentine says with that same not-quite-charming grin, “You see Eggsy, humanity is broken. It’s got thousands of different governments. It spends it’s time entertaining itself with wars. There’s famine, raids, over taxation. Humanity is incapable of maintaining itself. I want to change all that. You see if humanity has one leader, one unified goal it will thrive. If there’s a singular leader who can lay down laws across all lands there won’t be any confusion. Poverty will be eradicated. Children won’t go hungry. Humanity will be saved.”  
“Yeah? What about all them people you killed?” Eggsy questions.  
“It was unfortunate I admit. But it is a necessary evil. Those who won’t join us are against us. And those against us cannot be left to stand.”   
“And free will? What about that?”  
“I can understand your confusion. I have no interest in taking anyone’s free will away. I simply want to establish a unifying code so that no one is left in the cold.”  
Eggsy opens his mouth to argue but Valentine holds his hand up to stop him. He shakes his head affectionately, pats Eggsy’s knee, and rises.  
“Don’t worry about it now. You are still healing. Once you're more healed we will discuss further,” Valentine says. He holds his arm out, and Gazelle tucks herself against his side. They stroll out of the room like that, and the door falls closed with the telltale click of it latching.   
Eggsy lays back down on the bed. He’s too exhausted still to bother formulating an escape plan. Valentine has something in the works for him, he can tell. It isn’t going to happen before he heals though, so he figures he has some time to rest and heal before the plan is put into motion.  
He tucks himself back under the blankets and lets his legs curl loosely against the sheets. He relaxes against the squishy pillows and is out like a light.   
When he wakes up, his room is dark. There’s a lantern resting on the table and for a split second he thinks he might be back in Harry’s tent. His hope is dashed when he catches Gazelle out of the corner of his eye. She sets a tray of food down on the end of the bed, and slams the door on her way out.  
Eggsy sits up again and digs into the food; a chunk of hard cheese, an apple, a few slices of meat, and a cup of water. It’s probably just his healing body using the food as fuel but he swears it’s the most delicious thing he’s ever eaten. The apple is sweet and and crisp. The water is more clear somehow than even the stuff directly from the streams he came across while traveling with Kingsman. He wolfs it all down in just a few minutes.  
Once he’s finished he picks up the tray, and carries it to the door. He tries the handle, and is shocked to find it unlocked. He vows to explore just where he is tomorrow, assuming he has more energy. He returns to the bed, and falls asleep for the third time that day.  
He’s woken the next morning by Gazelle bringing him breakfast. Just like the day before he wolfs down the food in record time. Gazelle also brings him a clean set of clothes. They aren’t his and it’s obvious. The shirt is too long; the hem almost brushes his knees and the sleeves turn his hands to paws. The pants are a little too tight as well. Still it’s a relief to not have to put on the clothes he wore in the battle that are no doubt caked in grime and blood.  
Gazelle leaves shortly after dropping off the tray and clothes, so Eggsy takes his opportunity to explore. He slips out of the door and it clicks shut behind him. Without boots, his footsteps are oddly muffled. He spots a staircase at the end of the hall, and decides to go up. He hopes to spot their location from the upper stories of whatever construct they’rein.  
He’s winded by the time he reaches the top of the staircase. Nevertheless he pushes on. He shoves open the only door and finds himself standing on the ramparts of a small castle. He shuffles further out into the open, and the wind whips around him. It tosses his shirt up, and tugs at his hair like a live thing. Like it wants him to become wind himself.  
He peers into the distance as far as he can see. He can just make out a field of grass that has been burned away. Eggsy deduces that it must be the sight of their battle. It’s unlikely Charlie would’ve been able to cart him very far what with him bleeding and unconscious. It also confirms his suspicion that Valentine built the construct out of magic.   
He takes a moment to take stock of his injuries. If he’s moving then that’s a good sign. It either means the wounds weren’t as grievous as he thought, or that he’s healing quickly. Another few days and he might be able to make a break for home. For Harry.  
He shuffles back to the door, suddenly completely exhausted once again. He handles the staircase one step at a time. The last thing he wants is to fall and delay his healing process. He stops to rest at the bottom of the stairs and sits heavily on the bottom step.  
Gazelle rounds the corner and for once Eggsy sees something other than a murderous glare on her face. She’s surprised to see him out of bed. She comes to a stop just in front of him and something about his pathetic demeanour must soften her. She rolls her eyes, and holds her hand out to him.  
“Come with me,” she sighs, “I know something that might make you feel better.”


	14. Chapter 14

Eggsy takes Gazelle’s offered hand, and hauls himself to his feet. She leads him around the corner, down several flights of stairs,and out into the courtyard. She shoves open a door in a stone building, and leads him down two steps.  
Inside is a huge cavern. Light floods in from the windows set high in the ceiling and it illuminates the steaming water below. The way it refracts it turns the water a tempting green-blue.  
“Soak in there. It should help,” Gazelle instructs then turns and walks back out.  
Eggsy strips free of his clothes and sets them on a shelf set into the rock. Then he wades into the pool. Once it’s up to his waist, he sinks to the floor. The stone is worn smooth and doesn’t grate against his skin. The warm water and the minerals in it, help ease Eggsy’s aching muscles.  
He lets himself float there for as long as he dares. He let’s his mind drift, amusing himself with the reflections of the water on the ceiling. If he concentrates, he can feel all the magic he expended in the fight returning to him. Like a bucket being filled by the steady drip of a leaking roof. It flows into his blood and warms him from the inside.  
When his skin turns to prunes, he knows it’s time to return. If he doesn’t he runs the risk of Gazelle deciding to take matters into her own hands. Eggsy doesn’t want to think about what he’ll do if she barges in on him stark naked.  
He wades back out of the pool, feeling much better for it, then slides back into his clothes. The pants are even more uncomfortable now that his skin is wet. They stick, and cling, making walking dreadfully uncomfortable. He’s just pulling his shirt over his head when Gazelle opens the door again.  
“Good. You’re out,” she says with slightly less venom than usual, “Valentine requests your presence for dinner.”  
“No,” Eggsy blurts, unable to stop himself.  
“No?” Gazelle repeats, eyebrow raising.  
“I ain’t interested in what he has to say,” Eggsy responds.  
Gazelle steps forward, legs clicking menacingly on the stone. She comes to a halt in front of Eggsy. She looks exasperated and tired, like she doesn’t have time for this.  
“If you do not go to dinner, Valentine will leave you to me. Is that understood?” she asks coldly.  
“Yes,” Eggsy admits.  
“Then you will get dressed and join him for dinner,” she finishes, and offers him a chilly smile.  
“I’m already dressed,” Eggsy points out.  
“In your room,” she tells him, then walks away.  
Relaxation thoroughly destroyed, Eggsy makes his way back up to his room. The wound on his thigh pulls painfully as he climbs the stairs.The trousers stick to the water still clinging to the scab. So every shift of fabric pulls on the still healing skin.  
He collapses face first on the bed once he returns to his room. He can see the clothes out of the corner of his eye. They’re hanging over the footboard but he can’t seem to make himself get up to change. The last thing he wants to do is break bread with the man he was fighting against.  
He drags himself back to standing when the sun begins to stream through his window. He knows he can’t put it off any longer without Gazelle or even Valentine himself deciding to take it upon themselves to check on him. He strips out of the too-tight trousers, and trades them in for the looser black ones hanging over the end of the bed. They are infinitely more comfortable; soft, and light. The shirt is a deep green, and it’s the nicest thing Eggsy has ever worn, it has little vines embroidered in a lighter green along the collar. Still he misses the clothes he wore with Kingsman. The fur cloak especially. It was always so soft.  
He pulls on his boots, and reluctantly steps out into the hallway. Gazelle materials from nowhere as if she was ghost, and beckons him to follow. She leads him through a maze of winding halls until they come to a stop outside a set of double doors. She pushes them open and leads him to his seat, to the left of Valentine. She strides back out of the room, leaving them alone.  
Eggsy digs into the roasted meat on his plate, hoping to avoid all conversation. No such luck.  
“Eggsy, I think I may have come on a little strongly earlier,” Valentine says.  
Eggsy grunts noncommittally. He has no interest in whatever Valentine has to say. He knows it will all be more of the same; humans need guidance, control, a leader. Eggsy has no desire to take part.  
“You see, I have no desire to enslave the world. I know why it could be construed that way. All that talk of needing someone strong to lead. Enslaving people is some tough shit though. That leads to revolts, riots, chaos. No. I have no interest in that.”  
“What I meant was that there needs to be unification. A system in place so that everyone knows what is expected. Order is achieved through a common goal. Everyone coming under one rule would achieve that,” Valentine explains and takes a sip of his wine.  
“No offense mate but I been under men who just wanted a common goal. Ain’t no good can come of it,” Eggsy answer glibly.  
Valentine’s hand clenches involuntarily on the table next to his plate. His frustration getting the better of him. Eggsy knows if he can keep Valentine frustrated he will make a mistake. All men who want power do.  
“Eggsy, at least do me the honor of looking at my face when you reject me. We are equal aren’t we?”  
Eggsy sighs in annoyance and looks up from his plate for the first time. Valentine is staring at him intently. He squints at Eggsy slightly, considering something. He tilts his head just slightly to the left, and steeples his fingers below his chin. Eggsy feels a light tingle behind his eyes.  
“I need you to fight by my side Eggsy. It’s imperative that I have someone as powerful as me in this fight.I cannot take Raointean Mòra without you.”   
Eggsy opens his mouth to tell Valentine to fuck off. No matter how the mission is phrased, Eggsy is staunchly opposed. Instead what comes out is, “Then you got my help.”  
*  
“Harry sit down, ye are driving me nuts!” Merlin snaps.  
“How can you be so calm,” Harry growls, coming to a stop in front of their fire, “He’s been gone for three days! Three days Merlin. It’s obvious that Valentine took him. Who knows what that young man is going through!”  
“I understand that ye are worried about him Harry. We all are,” Merlin soothes, “As many warriors as we can spare are searching for leads. We will get him back.”  
Harry sinks down next to Merlin on the ground. He drops his head between his knees and tries to breathe. He doesn’t know what to do if they can’t get eggsy back. In the six months they knew each other, Eggsy grew to be a definite bright spot in his life. It will kill him to lose him before they could get anywhere. Every morning waking up without Eggsy reminds him how he failed.  
Merlin’s hand comes to rest between Harry’s shoulders, and he rubs soothing circles. Harry can feel the pinpricks of a spell being cast on him. No doubt Merlin is trying to relax him before he worries himself sick.  
“What happens now?” Harry asks softly.  
“We wait Harry. Eggsy is a strong lad. He’s been through worse than Valentine can put him through. He might be hurt by the time we get him back, but all hurts can heal. Ye need to keep positive about the situation,” Merlin tells him, and lets his hand come to rest on Harry’s shoulder.  
Harry tries to focus on that solid weight. Merlin has never steered him wrong in all the years they have known each other. If he says Eggsy will be okay, then Eggsy will be okay. Though the same can not be said about Harry. His stomach is in knots. Every nerve in his body is screaming at him that one of his people is in trouble.  
Merlin pats Harry’s shoulder, and stands up. He picks up a pot that was lying on the ground, scours it with a quick cleaning spell, and fills it with water. Harry loses track of all the herbs that Merlin crams into the pot. Harry knows he will end up drinking it, and really it’s better if he isn’t aware of what’s going in the tea. Instead he focuses on replaying everything about the battle.  
The flurry of magics started around the same time Harry was helping Merlin fight another mage. A hulking man with a snake tattoo that wrapped around his arms and neck. It came to life if anyone came too close to the man. The council was all nearby. He remembers seeing Roxy out of the corner of his eye, and catching glimpses of Percival and James fighting back to back. The only person he doesn’t remember seeing is Charlie. Come to think of it, he hasn’t seen Charlie since they rode into battle.  
He rises slowly to his feet, starting to connect all the dots. Merlin glances up from his tea making, and scowls.  
“Oh no. No. I know that look and it always leads us into trouble. What are ye thinking?” he demands.  
“Have you seen Charlie recently?” Harry asks.  
“No,” Merlin says hesitantly, “Why?”  
Harry shakes his head, and sets off across the camp. He can hear Merlin chasing after him, cursing up a blue streak. Roxy is staying across the camp from them. If anyone has seen Charlie, it will be her. As they are roughly the same age, Charlie has a tendency to butt into her life, despite neither of them getting along with each other.  
People scramble out of his way as he goes charging towards Roxy’s tent. Percival and James are sitting outside cooking. They both jump to their feet when they see the expression on Harry’s feet. As always unfailingly loyal, and ready to fight for him at a moment’s notice.  
“Have either of you seen Charlie?” Harry asks.  
“No. Percy?” James asks, but Percival shakes his head.  
Harry stomps passed them and shoves his head into Roxy’s tent. Harry’s tone outside must have woken her from a nap because she’s sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes.   
“What’s going on?” she grumbles.  
“Have you seen Charlie?” Harry asks again.  
“No. Why?” Roxy snips.  
“Fuck.” Harry curses, and withdraws from the tent.  
Merlin grabs him by the shoulder before he can take off again.  
“What is going on Harry? Ye can’t keep dashing all over the fucking camo without explaining why,” Merlin intones.  
“I think Charlie kidnapped Eggsy.”  
*  
“Charlie! It’s so good to see you!” Valentine cries.  
Eggsy glares silently as Charlie enters the dining room. He’s the same pompous ass as always but Eggsy really and truly hates him now. Betraying him is one thing, many people have in the past, but betraying Harry is another. He was part of the council. He was one of the few entrusted with the lives of so many. He betrayed them all.  
“It is always good to see you Lord Valentine. I apologize for being so late,” he says and his voice is so smug Eggsy wants to punch him.  
“Nonsense,” Valentine dismisses, “You have been hard at work. My spells can’t spread themselves.”  
“Of course,” Charlie agrees, and takes his place for dinner.  
“It’s a good thing you arrived tonight,” Valentine points out after swallowing his bite of bread, “There are matters Eggsy and I wish to discuss with you. Isn’t that right Eggsy?”  
They both turn to him expectantly. He keeps his mouth firmly shut. He learned early on that it took too much work to outright do the opposite of what Valentine wanted him to do. However he also learned that his magic was still enough under his control that he could avoid doing what Valentine instructed.   
Valentine sighs in annoyance when Eggsy doesn’t respond. He turns back to Charlie, dismissing Eggsy from the immediate conversation. Charlie ignores Eggsy as well, and focuses all of his little rat brain on him.  
“I want to push back the rebels of Raointean Mòra. I know our warriors are scattered but I think it would be worth it to attack now. They won’t be expecting it. What do you think?” Valentine asks.  
“It depends on how you expect to target them. They lost far fewer warriors than we did,” Charlie points out.  
Eggy scowls, and sinks lower in his chair. His magic tingles at his fingertips but he can’t let it out. It wouldn’t be so easy to wipe these men from the face of the earth. Valentine has too much control.  
“That is a fair point. You lived with them for a time, can you think of anything that can be exploited?” Valentine questions.  
Charlie’s gaze slides to Eggsy, and a smug grin spreads across his face. Eggsy shifts higher in his seat, glaring daggers at Charlie, imagining sending his fist through his stupid face. Charlie turns to Valentine, effectively boxing Eggsy out of the conversation once again.  
“I can think of something,” Charlie insinuates, tilting his head towards Eggsy.  
“Oh ho ho. You do come through Charlie,” Valentine says, an equally smug grin spreading across his face, “I think you should go visit those rebels of yours. Tell them we wish to negotiate.”  
*  
Roxy comes tearing into the meeting tent without so much as a hello. She skids to a stop in front of Harry. Her franticness is enough to draw Harry’s attention away from his battle plans. He won’t be able to focus on raiding Valentine’s stronghold with Roxy practically bouncing in place.  
“Yes Roxy? What is it?” he sighs.  
“Charlie is standing on the edge of camp demanding to speak to you,” she blurts in a rush.  
“You’re joking,” Harry deadpans, but Roxy shakes her head, “You’re not joking. What the fuck? Why does that betraying piece of shit want to speak to me?”  
“I don’t know. He won’t tell any of us, and he invoked Slighe Shàbhailte. None of us can touch him,” Roxy informs him.  
Harry snatches his sword belt from the table and cinches it firmly around his waist. Slighe Shàbhailte or not, he’s going prepared. He pushes open the flaps of the meeting tent, and strides after Roxy. They go to the west edge of camp, and sure enough Charlie is waiting. Harry’s shoulders tense, and he’s grateful for Roxy’s hand on his arm stopping from going after the fucker.  
“What do you want?” Harry growls.  
“Valentine wants a meeting,” Charlie announces, “He wants to negotiate a treaty.”  
“What makes him think we are willing to negotiate?” Harry asks.  
“He thinks you care about your people. If you negotiate, you can stop a war that would wipe out Raointean Mòra,” Charlie explains flippantly, “He also believes we have something you would like back.”  
Harry sucks in a sharp breath at the mention of Eggsy. His gut tells him to kill Charlie where he stands, but Roxy squeezes his arm to remind him to hold his ground. If he kills Charlie, he will never see Eggsy again.  
“Very well. We are willing to negotiate,” Harry responds.  
Charlie nods once, “Then we will see you shortly.”  
He turns away from them and walks off towards the horizon. Harry turns to face Roxy, not bothering to watch Charlie. The little worm doesn’t have enough spine to betray him to his face.  
“What do we do?” Roxy asks quickly.  
“Go back. Gather any warriors that can stand. Make sure the council is among them. We show strength. Prove we will not be cowed,” Harry instructs.  
Roxy darts off again, and Harry is immensely grateful for her. He couldn’t face having to repeat his and Charlie’s conversations over and over. It is difficult enough to think about facing Eggsy, let alone sharing it with everyone. He was meant to keep Eggsy safe. It was never spoken out loud, but ever since Harry fished him out of the river he felt responsible. He can’t stand the idea of Eggsy being tortured because Harry didn’t keep an eye on him.  
Merlin is the first of the warriors and council to arrive. He stands shoulder to shoulder with him, doesn’t say a word. He is a silent but comforting presence. Merlin will always be there for him. One by one, the warriors fill in behind them. James and Percival join them at the head of the triangle and finally Roxy arrives. Then they wait.  
It isn’t long before Valentine arrives. They can spot him a mile off. Warriors ride on giant white stallions, flagging either side of a box floating five feet off the ground. Bright purple flags flutter off its sides, twisting in the breeze. It adds to the overall fanfare. Harry feels ill.  
They come to a stop a stone throw's distance away. The side of the box slides up, creating an opening. Valentine steps out, and grins slickly at Harry. Harry ignores him. There’s only one person he wants to see, and he steps out after Charlie. Harry breathes a sigh of relief when he sees Eggsy safe and unharmed. His eyes are unfocused but there is no sign of beating or pain. He drags his eyes away, and focuses on Valentine.  
“Lord Valentine,” Harry greets.  
“Harry Hart as I live and breathe,” Valentine exclaims and holds his hand out to shake, “You gave us a good beating. There’s no denying that.”  
“Quite,” Harry replies, and ignores the proffered hand.  
Valentine retracts his hand, and lets it curl loosely by his side. There’s a flash of anger behind his eyes, but Harry ignores it.  
“Shall we negotiate terms?” Harry asks.


	15. Chapter 15

Valentine conjures a table and chair, and they both take a seat. They are padded with elaborate brightly colored yellow and orange fabrics, and the table is draped with a bright blue cloth. It must be Valentine’s style. His clothes are blindingly white. Everything from his shirt to his shoes is the same spotless white. Harry can feel himself beginning to resent clouds for being the same color.  
The familiar sensation of Merlin casting a shield slides over Harry’s shoulders. It’s greatly appreciated. Harry would not put it passed Valentine to try to cast a spell on him to turn negotiations in his favor. Dark magic is untrustworthy to its core.  
Harry glances over Valentine’s shoulder. Eggsy is standing next to Charlie, and up close it is ever more apparent that there is something fundamentally off. Eggsy’s eyes are not only unfocused, but glazed over. The warriors make no attempt to try to restrain him. It worries him deep in his hind brain.  
A breeze whistles across the field, and it echoes in the silence. No one so much as dares to breathe too loudly. Valentine stares back at Harry, both declining to speak first. Valentine’s eyes are cold and dead. Despite the wide smile still stretching across his face, there is no joy there. There isn’t even the calm calculation of a man trying to come out on top. Just cold.  
Valentine settles back in his seat, lounging ostentatiously. Harry shoves away the annoyance at the obvious display of power. This meeting is not a battle of egos. It is about keeping Raointean Mòra safe, and bringing Eggsy home. He keeps his face stoic. He won’t lose the upper hand by speaking first.  
It seems to wear on Valentine. He shifts uncomfortably in his seat. He drums his fingers on his thigh impatiently. Finally he sighs, and sits up properly.  
“We won’t get anywhere if we don’t discuss what we want,” he says.  
“I understand this,” Harry says easily, “Why not lay out your terms? I have no issue with trying to negotiate from there.”  
“Fine,” Valentine snaps, “I understand that you want us to leave Raointean Mòra alone. Unfortunately we can’t do that. You are right in the way. We plan to extend into the territories you block. I suggest that you let us pass through your territory. In turn, we will leave you free from our rule. You can live your lives as you please.”  
“No,” Harry answers.  
“No?” Valentine demands, leaning forward angrily.  
“No,” Harry repeats, “I don’t think that is fair for us. You will have control of an empire. Raointean Mòra holds a handful of warriors in comparison to everything you will have at your fingertips.”  
“Then what do you suggest?” Valentine demands.  
“I want you to stop here. You will not invade Raointean Mòra any further. However, we have extensive contact with the kingdoms in the north, and the isles in the east. We trade with them regularly. To keep you out of Raointean Mòra, we will establish a trade route with your empire as well,” Harry answers.  
“How does this benefit me? I could just push through your defenses, and conquer the kingdoms myself. Then I would be in control of all of their resources,” Valentine points out.  
“It comes down to the money and power you could generate,” Harry explains.  
“Go on,” Valentine instructs.  
“Were you to invade, everyone could simply trade among themselves. By letting us supply you with these resources, you control how they are distributed. You set the price. All proceeds go to you,” Harry finishes.  
“I have to say Harry, this does seem to make sense. But you see, how would I know you are giving me a fair trade? How would I know that you aren’t keeping ninety percent of it for yourself while only giving us ten?   
“No. There needs to be insurance. I want a man of my own on the inside. Directly in contact with supplies. I want to have my fair share. Otherwise this relationship won’t work.”  
“Very well,” Harry agrees, “I can see why you would want that. However, for such a privilege we want Eggsy back. He is one of our own after all. If we are discussing what is fair, then holding someone against their will is hardly fair.”  
That draws a laugh from Valentine. It’s somehow dark but shrill at the same time. It rings out across the field as clear as bell. It sends a chill up Harry’s spine, and makes the hair on his arms stand on end. That laugh is the sound of predator. It sets everyone on edge.  
Valentine stops laughing, and once again lounges against his seat. This time it seems like this time he believes in the causal dominance he’s trying to assert. Where before it was a show of power, this time it’s a display of confidence. He tilts his back to look at Charlie and Eggsy.  
“Charlie, is Eggsy being held against his will?” Valentine asks.  
“No my lord,” Charlie answers.  
“Please,” Harry snorts, “Charlie is spineless. He will agree to anything you say. I would like to hear from Eggsy.”  
Valentine sighs, and gestures with two fingers.  
As Harry watches, Eggsy’s eyes seem to click back into focus. He walks across the field, and comes to stand next to Valentine’s shoulder.  
“Eggsy,” Valentine begins patronizingly, “Are you being held against your will?”  
“No my lord,” Eggsy answers.  
“There you go Hart. Your boy is not being held against his will,” Valentine says.  
“With all due respect, he has been in your company for almost a week now,” Harry points out, “I would like proof that he isn’t just saying this to avoid your repercussions.”  
“Proof,” Valentine snarks.  
“Yes.” Harry responds.  
“You want proof?” Valentine asks.  
“I believe I’ve made that clear,” Harry answers.  
“Proof it is then. Eggsy,” Valentine says.  
Eggsy moves so quickly, Harry almost misses it. One second he is standing perfectly still, the next he sends a shard of ice towards Harry’s throat. Harry dodges it but it barely misses him. He can hear it whistle past his ear and he thanks the gods Eggsy hasn’t thought to undo Merlin’s sheild.  
He jumps up from his seat and kicks it away. Valentine lets out another unearthly peel of laughter as he watches. Harry stares at Eggsy in horror but all he receives is a cold angry stare.  
“Eggsy--” Harry starts but is forced away as Eggsy lashes out again.  
Lightning arcs just inches from Harry’s nose. Automatically, his hand flies to his sword. HIs instinct to cut away the danger in front of him. As he draws, he stops. He can’t cut Eggsy down.  
Eggsy senses the weakness, and advances on Harry again. With a casual flick of his wrist, a rope of fire bursts into the air. It flies through the air, aiming for Harry’s throat. He ducks desperately, and he can feel the heat of it on the back of his neck.  
He straightens again, and draws his sword properly. He holds it to Eggsy’s throat. Despite hating it, he stays steady.  
“Eggsy stop. You don’t want to do this,” he says.  
Eggsy backs up several paces and Harry breathes a sigh of relief. It really seems like the fight is over. The relief doesn’t last.  
Eggsy holds his hand out behind him, and draws one of the warriors swords from its scabbard. It soars through the air, and the hilt lands perfectly in his palm. Without missing a beat, he swings the sword around.  
Harry blocks the blow but it hurts his arm. Eggsy is increasing the strengths of his blows with magic. As the swords clash, the vibration travels down Harry’s arm and rattles around his ribcage. Eggsy pulls back, and swings at Harry again. Harry stumbles back again, and blocks the blow.   
“Why are you doing this?” he asks, desperately trying to reach Eggsy.  
Again and again they clash. Each time, Harry is forced to stumble back. He can’t bring himself to attack. It doesn’t matter that Eggsy hates him now. Harry can’t bring himself to hurt him. Eggsy is everything to him. He would far rather Eggsy be alive, and on Valentine’s side than be dead on any side.  
Harry knocks one of Eggsy’s blows wide, and the sword goes skittering across the ground. They both pause momentarily, panting. Harry lowers his sword just slightly, prepared to let up if Eggsy back away from defeat.   
“Eggsy please,” Harry pleads, voice cracking, “You don’t need to do this. Come back to me.”  
Eggsy continues his attack as if nothing happens. He slams Harry in the chest with a burst of energy. Harry goes flying backward and hits the ground. Eggsy picks up his sword once more, and comes at Harry again.  
Harry rolls sideways, away from the downward blow, and brings his sword up to parry. Eggsy presses down hard on their blades, and Harry strains against the force. He shoves hard against it, and when the swords are far enough away, he kicks Eggsy in the stomach. Eggsy falls away, and Harry jumps back to his feet. He wipes sweat from his brow, and from his eyes. Eggsy is doubled over, clearly in pain.   
“Please Eggsy. Stop,” Harry begs.  
All Harry wants to do is reach out to him. He loves Eggsy, and he doesn’t want to see him in pain. All the nights they spent together flood up inside of him. The way Eggsy looked asleep, so peaceful in the early morning light. How sweet and shy his kisses were at first, as if Harry would suddenly stop kissing him back. Harry can’t possibly hurt him.  
His distraction costs him. Eggsy recovers from the kick, and picks up his sword. He advances on Harry, sword glinting dangerously. He swings at Harry’s head again, and Harry blocks the blow. He’s unprepared, and his block is sloppy. It throws his balance off, and he falls. He lands with a thump on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Then the tip of Eggsy’s sword is pressed into his throat.  
Valentine comes up behind Eggsy, and rests his hand on Eggsy’s shoulder. He smiles wickedly down at Harry.  
“I’d say that was pretty clear, wouldn’t you Hart? Seems Eggsy is not against his will after all,” he teases then turns to Eggsy, “Kill him.”  
“Eggsy please, you don’t have to do this,” Harry cries out, “I am not your enemy. I love you. Please don’t kill me.”  
Valentine lets out another peel of unnatural laughter, and nudges Harry with his toe. He catches a gash on Harry’s ribs, left over from the battle a week ago. Harry grunts in pain, flinching away from the boot. The motion knicks his neck on the sword.  
“It’s over Hart. Charlie said our boy would be your downfall, and it seems he was right. If you close your eyes, you won’t even know your throat has been cut.” he sneers.  
Harry turns away from Valentine, and stares desperately up at Eggsy. His face is calm, closed off. Like he doesn’t even know who Harry is, or doesn’t care. The tip of the sword presses more firmly against his throat, forcing his head and back to the ground. The blades of grass tickles his ears, and he squeezes his eyes tight shut.  
He knows that any self respecting warrior would stare his killer down. That they would stay strong in even in death but he just can’t. He can not stare down the man he loves, knowing that there is nothing of him left. He wants the last thing he sees to be free of the pain he feels.  
“Kill him Eggsy. What the fuck are you waiting for?” Valentine yells impatiently.  
The weight of the sword lifts from Harry’s throat suddenly. Unbidden, a few tears slip down his cheeks. This is it. Either Merlin will strike Eggsy down, or Harry will die. Either way his life will be over. He digs his fingers into the grass, and cringes away from the shadows above him. Death is inevitable.  
*  
Eggsy is pulling his punches. He has enough magic to kill Harry with a snap of his fingers, and ever since he learned to utilize the ring his magic has only grown. Forget killing him with a snap of his fingers, he could probably kill Harry with a strong enough thought.  
This same magic is what’s keeping him from straight up killing Harry. Valentine’s magic is strong. Eggsy has tried time and again to break the spell he’s under but with no luck. Still, it’s no match for Eggsy’s stubbornness and power.  
Valentine draws all his magic from others. He draws it from the very earth itself, and it slowly kills everything it touches. It’s like a parasite. It sucks the life force from its host, and leaves it with nothing.  
While Valentine’s magic is overwhelming, Eggsy’s magic is firm. It is unyielding like the cliff being pounded by the sea. No matter how often waves crash into him, he stands tall. He is able to push back against Valentine’s magic. He can half-ass Valentine’s demands without any repercussions.  
He swings the sword as widely and obnoxiously as possible. He tries to give Harry plenty of time to block the blows. It’s a difficult line to walk. He can’t be too obvious about his plan. If Valentine catches him, there will be more pain for him and Harry than anyone could imagine. He has to make it believable.  
“Eggsy stop. You don’t want to do this,” Harry says, and Eggsy’s heart cracks.  
Harry is right. Eggsy doesn’t want to be doing this. He would never want to hurt Harry. This is killing him. He wanted to share all the beauty of the magic he learned with Harry, not turn it against him.   
The situation is made all the worse by Harry’s face. He’s devastated. He seems to truly believe that Eggsy is trying to kill him. It means the plan is working but Eggsy aches all over.  
He just has to buy them time. He swings at Harry again, keeping his grip on the sword intentionally loose. When Harry brings his sword up to block, it sends Eggsy’s sword flying.  
“Eggsy please,” Harry pleads, voice cracking, “You don’t need to do this. Come back to me.”  
I want to.  
Eggsy throws a burst of energy at Harry. In comparison to what he was throwing during the battle, it’s more like a gentle toss. Harry still goes flying. Eggsy hates the sound he makes when he hits the ground.  
He grabs the sword again, and advances on Harry. He swings the sword in a slow arc at Harry’s head. Harry rolls sideways, away from the downward blow, and brings his sword up to parry. Eggsy presses down hard on their blades, and Harry strains against the force. He shoves hard against it, and when the swords are far enough away, he kicks Eggsy in the stomach. Eggsy falls away.   
He clutches his stomach in pain. He hasn’t been hit so hard since he left Dean behind. He gags once, twice, and tries to not to vomit. He takes deep steadying breaths, fighting down the wave of nausea.  
Harry looks awful. He’s clearly torn up about what he’s doing. Eggsy is grateful that Harry is putting up a fight. No matter how painful it is physically or emotionally. The only way for them to get through this alive is for Valentine to think Harry is the weak one.  
“Please Eggsy. Stop,” Harry begs, and Eggsy wishes he could.  
Harry is staring at him imploringly. It’s so hard to ignore. Still he pushes onward. He grabs the sword firmly, and swings at Harry’s head.  
Just like Eggsy planned, it comes too quickly for Harry to block without falling again. Harry lands with a hard thump on his back. Eggsy presses the tip of his sword into Harry’s throat. He is careful to keep the pressure light enough that it doesn’t hurt Harry.  
Valentine strides up beside him, and rests a proprietary hand on his shoulder. Eggsy forces himself not to flinch.  
“I’d say that was pretty clear, wouldn’t you Hart? Seems Eggsy is not against his will after all,” Valentine teases then turns to Eggsy, “Kill him.”  
“Eggsy please, you don’t have to do this,” Harry cries out, “I am not your enemy. I love you. Please don’t kill me.”  
Eggsy’s heart clenches painfully. He doesn’t want to kill Harry. He is everything to him. He gave Eggsy a family. He let Eggsy grow as a person, showed him kindness the world never saw fit to grant him.  
Valentine lets out another peel of unnatural laughter, and nudges Harry with his toe. Harry grunts in pain, flinching away from the boot. The motion knicks his neck on the sword.  
“It’s over Hart. Charlie said our boy would be your downfall, and it seems he was right. If you close your eyes, you won’t even know your throat has been cut,” he sneers.  
Eggsy expects Harry to stare him down. It’s a long standing tradition in Raointean Mòra, warriors stare down their killers. Harry closes his eyes. That is the last straw. Eggsy can’t wait for Valentine to lift his spell. He can’t bear the tears streaking down Harry’s cheeks.  
Eggsy gathers every ounce of magic he has, and focuses on the spell Valentine cast, worming it’s way through his brain. He release his magic. It burns through his head like an intense fire. It traces the trail of the spell, and burns it out.  
“Kill him Eggsy. What the fuck are you waiting for?” Valentine yells impatiently.  
Eggsy whirls around, and sinks his sword in Valentine’s chest. The blood gushes over Eggsy’s hand; thick and black. Valentine stumbles back with a sickly gurgle, and collapses to the ground. Eggsy stands over him, and raises an eyebrow.  
“I told you mate. I been under men who just wanted a common goal. Ain’t no good can come of it,” Eggsy says.  
Valentine gurgles one last time, and goes still.  
Eggsy turns away, and dives for Harry. He comes down on his knees too hard but he ignores the pain. He grabs Harry’s hand, and holds it close to his chest.  
“Harry?” he asks softly.  
Harry opens his eyes, and relief floods his face. He sits bolt upright, and drags Eggsy into a tight hug. Eggsy squeezes back just as hard.  
“I’m so sorry Harry. I never wanted to hurt you,” Eggsy murmurs.  
“I know my darling boy. I know,” Harry assures him and gently tangles his fingers in Eggsy’s hair, “I know.”


	16. Epilogue

Daisy’s giggles split the warm autumn air. She runs forward, hands reaching for the glittering translucent butterflies above her head. She catches one and it dissolves to nothing in her little fingers. She turns to Eggsy with the most dour scowl a five year old can manage.  
“Where’d it go?” she demands, hands on hips.  
Eggsy grins at her. She looks more like her mother everyday and Eggsy blesses whatever deity decided to leave her father’s looks out. Even if she is going to start trying to mother him.  
“It weren’t real Dais. Just some magic,” Eggsy answers, and leans back on his elbows in the long sweet smelling grass.  
That answer doesn’t seem to suit Daisy. She stomps up to him, jaw sticking out stubbornly. Eggsy feels a twinge of pride when he recognizes she picked up that look from him. She stands in between his knees and rests her two little fists on her hips.  
“Well if you can do magic how come you can’t make real butterflies?”  
“Cause it’s mean to catch real butterflies.”  
“Why?” Daisy asks.  
“Cause you shouldn’t catch anything that you don’t plan on using,” Eggsy explains, nudging her ankle with his knee, “Gotta let things fill their purpose yeah?”  
“Why?” Daisy asks again.  
“Cause otherwise nature gets thrown off,” Eggsy answers.  
“Why?”  
“Cause then other animals don’t got enough to eat.”  
“Why?” Daisy demands, crouching down so her butt is maybe an inch off the ground.  
“Cause the food will get all gross from being dead for a long time,” Eggsy answers with a sigh.  
“Why?”   
“Oh for fucks sake Dais,” Eggsy grumbles, “Now you’re just messing with me.”  
An evil grin spreads across her little face, and she jumps up from her spot. She darts a few feet away from Eggsy, and pauses.  
“I’m telling Mummy and Harry you said a bad word!” she sing songs, and takes off across the grass.  
“Shit!” Eggsy shouts, and scrambles up from his spot. He chases her until he’s able to scoop her up in his arms. He comes to a halt, and holds her tight while she squirms trying to get down. If she really wants down he will let her go, but for now they’re still playing.  
“No being a tattle tale,” he tells her.  
“But Mummy don’t like when you say bad words,” Daisy points out sagely.  
“Yeah. That’s true. Mum hates when I use bad words,” Eggsy agrees and leans closer to Daisy conspiratorially, “But if you promise not to tell I can teach you some magic. What do you say?”  
Daisy obviously carefully weighs her options. On one hand, turning Eggsy in means she gets half of his sweets from the ones they picked up in Violl's Garden. On the other hand she gets to learn a new trick, one that will likely drive mummy nuts. She nods at Eggsy.  
“Okay. I wanna learn magic,” she answers.  
“That’s my girl,” Eggsy says proudly, and lets her down to the grass as gently as he can.  
Daisy is just coming into her own magic. So far she’s only been able to conjure a light breeze, and make Harry’s paperweight roll off his desk, but it’s a start.   
Michelle is hesitant to develop Daisy’s magic, and Eggsy can’t blame her. After what Dean did to him growing up he can see why she wouldn’t want to bring another magic user into a world so hostile to it, but she won’t listen when he tells her most people are like Harry. That they view magic as something to be respected.  
She also won’t listen when he tells her it will be harder for Daisy in the long run to teach her to fear her magic. That it will only make the magic inside harder to control. To this day Eggsy still struggles to not let the magic control him, despite using it almost nonstop for two years. So he teaches Daisy little bits and pieces on the sly.  
He takes Daisy’s little hand in his, and leads her a little further away from camp. It brings back memories of when he was training with Merlin. He’s happy to be passing on everything he’s learned.  
Daisy’s hair bounces as she skips along beside him. The sun reflects off the golden highlights, and bathes her sweet little face in a warm glow. Eggsy is struck by how much he loves her.  
“Okay,” Eggsy announces coming to a stop, “Here’s a good spot. You ready little flower?”  
“Yes!” Daisy answers enthusiastically, and nods her head vigorously several times.  
“Great,” Eggsy responds and sits down so he’s at Daisy’s height, “Can you close you eyes for me Dais?”  
“Duh,” Daisy sasses, squeezing her eyes shut over dramatically.  
“Hey no need to be cheeky with me if I’m teaching you something cool,” Eggsy admonishes, “Do you remember how I taught you to get your magic flowing?”  
“Uhmmm….” Daisy hesitates.  
“It’s okay if you don’t,” Eggsy assures her.  
“No,” Daisy answers finally.  
“That’s alright. I want you to think of something that makes you really really happy. Can you do that for me?”  
“Yeah. I can do it,” Daisy says with determination. Her little face screws up in concentration, and she clenches her fists, “Okay.”  
“Good girl,” Eggsy praises quickly, “When you feel all tingly from being so happy just imagine all the tingles rushing into your fingers. Then when it’s all there ask for it to do something cool.”  
Daisy stands perfectly still for a long time. Long enough that Eggsy is getting ready to tell Daisy she doesn’t have to try so hard. He doesn’t want her to hurt herself. Finally a stream of blue smoke spills from her hands. Her eyes fly open full of hope, and her face floods with joy.  
“Look Eggsy,” she shouts, clapping her hands together, “I did something!”  
“I know Daisy! You did it! It looks very cool,” Eggsy agrees.  
Daisy shrieks in delight, and her happiness makes the smoke balloon out even more. The attention span of a five year old doesn’t hold for long. Soon Daisy is distracted chasing her own smoke, trying to capture it back into her hands. Eggsy is happy to watch her.   
A hand comes to rest on Eggsy’s shoulder, and Eggsy startles away. He whips his head around, magic sparking in his palms and in the ring; ready for a fight. He lets out a whoosh of air when he sees it’s Harry, and puts a hand to his chest.  
“Babe. No sneaking up on me you fucker,” Eggsy pants.  
“My apologies,” Harry says and lowers himself to the grass beside Eggsy, “I just wanted to see how you and miss Daisy were getting along.”  
“We’re good. We’ve just been hanging out. Played capture the butterfly and shit like that. Pretty uneventful,” Eggsy leans up against Harry’s side, “Didn’t you have a council meeting today?”  
“It is… possible that there may have been a gathering,” Harry hedges.  
“So you used Dais and I to skip out early because the leader of the Copper Snakes is fucking boring?”  
“Yes. Exactly,” Harry responds.  
Eggsy snorts and turns his head to look at Harry. His hair is perfectly styled as always despite Harry living on the back of a horse. The touches of grey at his temples glint in the sun. Eggsy secretly thinks Harry convinced Merlin to cast a little spell so his hair is always immaculate. Merlin wouldn’t do it sober, but Eggsy has seen him do more ridiculous things than that when he’s drunk.  
His eyes are warm, and full of love as he watches Daisy play. Eggsy falls a little in love with him all over again. He’s never met anyone else who cares as deeply as him about his family but Harry does. He’s the reason Eggsy even has them back in his life.  
Harry must notice him staring because he turns to look at him. His smiles at Eggsy and huffs a small laugh.  
“What is it that you’re looking at young man?” Harry teases.  
“Ah just some old bloke who’s too high and mighty for himself,” Eggsy shoots back.  
Harry slides his hand to the back of Eggsy’s neck, and pulls him in gently. He presses his lips to Eggsy’s. Eggsy sighs happily and leans into the kiss. He never gets tired of this. Harry kissing him makes the magic inside glow white hot inside him.  
Harry’s hand slides further up, and tangles in Eggsy’s hair. Eggsy groans softly, and deepens the kiss. He’s completely distracted by Harry slowly kissing his breath away, and doesn't even notice that Daisy has stopped playing.  
She makes the loudest gagging noise Eggsy has ever heard in his life. He and Harry go shooting apart in surprise and Eggsy accidentally bites his own lip on his way back. Hrns to Daisy with a small frown.  
“Why’d you do that?” he demands, mildly annoyed.  
“Cause kissing is yucky,” Daisy answers like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, and her nose wrinkles in disgust.  
“Not when you’re a grown up,” Eggsy tells her.  
Daisy shrugs her shoulders, and crosses her arms, “Well, I’m not a grown up.”  
“You’re right Miss Daisy. You aren’t a grown up,” Harry says, leaning forward, “but do you know what that means?”  
“Um… no?” she answers curiously.  
“It means,” Harry whispers, “That you aren’t safe from the tickle monster!” he yells, and dives at her, wiggling his fingers.  
Daisy lets out another shriek and runs away from Harry’s reaching hands. A chase ensues. Daisy runs as fast as she can, and Harry exaggerates his steps. She manages to stay ahead of Harry for as long as he’ll let her. Then he wraps his arms around middle and starts tickling.  
Daisy lets out a shrill peal of laughter and tosses herself in Harry’s grip. She twists, and wiggles, laughing all the while. It’s a surprisingly useful technique. Harry doesn’t want to hold on too tight and hurt her, so her wriggling slackens his grip even more. Finally he lets her go, and she collapses to the grass out of breath from laughter.  
Eggsy and Harry collapse next to her too. They lay there, watching the clouds scuttle passed. Eventually Eggsy sits up, and stretches his arms high above his head. This is the most relaxing day he’s had in awhile.   
“Hey Daisy, wanna see something cool?” Eggsy asks.  
She sits bolt upright and clambers into his lap, “Yeah yeah!”  
Eggsy laughs, and presses a kiss to her hair. He reaches out two fingers and touches them to the soil in front of them. He lets the magic trickle down to the ground. It fills the little patch of dirt, and starts to take root. He draws his fingers up from the ground slowly and steadily. A flower bud follows. As he and Daisy watch, it blooms. It’s bright yellow petals unfold to form a daisy. Once Eggsy is satisfied with it, he plucks it from the dirt and passes it to Daisy.  
“Woah,” she breathes and takes the stem in her fingers, “Is it metal?”  
“Yeah. I didn’t want it to go bad,” Eggsy explains to her, “So you can keep it for all your life. Even when you’re as old as Harry.”  
“That’s really old,” Daisy says, awestricken.  
“It is not really old!” Harry says indignantly, and sits up.  
“Is too!” Daisy says stubbornly.  
Eggsy snorts in laughter, “You’re older than both of us combined Harry.”  
“Oh hush you. You’re not helping,” Harry grumbles.  
“Weren’t trying to,” Eggsy points out.  
“Cheeky. The both of you,” Harry rolls his eyes, “I do think we should get Daisy back for dinner before your mother comes hounding after you.”  
“Yeah. Good point,” Eggsy agrees and uses his magic to rebraid Daisy’s hair neatly. When he’s finished he tucks the metal flower into the top, “Let’s go.”  
He piggybacks Daisy all the way back to camp, and passes her back to their mum for the night. He slides his hand into Harry’s and leads the way to their fire. Dinner is more of the same but after the day Eggsy just had it tastes like something fit for the richest of kings.  
They clamber into bed full of stew, and joy. Eggsy bundles the furs around himself and Harry, and tucks himself to Harry’s side. He sighs sleepily and presses another kiss to Harry’s lips.  
“I fucking love you,” he murmurs.  
“I love you too my darling boy,” Harry whispers back.


End file.
